Black & Blue
by bobwinkle12
Summary: This is the story of a teenager, Blue Slade, adventuring and learning with Pokemon.  It is in the same relm as the beloved Pokemon videogames, but I took liberties to make the story, well, mine.  Enjoy as the story unfolds!  Please write reviews!
1. Chapter 1

_Author's note: Before you start reading my first pokemon fan-fiction, I just want to say that I'm writing a darker and more serious take on what I know about pokemon from the games and what little I've seen from the anime. I always felt that in the anime that I couldn't take it seriously because of how goofy it was, and in the game I felt as if there was little story in it at all. This story takes place before Ash Ketchum's adventure, – if there's any continuity issues please let me know. - so you might run into some characters from the games and anime. So if you feel like I'm not characterizing someone correctly let me know, but despite that the story will deal with almost always original characters. This story will be rated T for graphic violence and content. It might start off very kiddy, but it'll get darker and more interesting as it goes. This first chapter comes with a prologue, and they set up the main character. I'm not a big fan of headers and footers, so this might be the last. Enjoy!_

**Black & Blue**

Prologue: Firsts

"Blue, honey!" called my mother.

Those were the last words I heard before I saw my first Pokémon. A blue-gray, muscular human-like creature was walking through our house picking up heavy furniture. It frightened me. It sort of looked like a person, but it had characteristics that we don't have – different colored skin, red marks defining the bulging muscles on its arms, and had a brown crest on its head. Monsters had finally come for me! I ran to my beautiful, brunette mother asking her why there was a monster in our house.

"Blue, darling, don't be scared! Are you sure you don't know what that is?" she asked, wiping sweat from her forehead. She was busy packing our belongings while I goofed around.

"No, Mom!" I replied, defending my monster-ignorance. I pointed to the strong monster lifting our sofa.

"That, Blue, is a Pokémon. Pokémon are creatures that live in our world along with us. That strong Pokémon over there moving our stuff is called a Ma-choke. The Machoke is the mover's Pokémon, so he's a good Pokémon. Don't worry; he won't hurt you!" she explained, pointing to the Pokémon carrying our couch one-handed.

A wave of relief washed over me. This big, strong creature was a good guy! I stared at it for a moment, soaking in what my mom shared with me. After coming to terms with the Machoke, I ran up to it and said 'Hello!' The Pokemon didn't say anything back to me, but it replied with a friendly smile and head-nod. It was a giant in my eyes, especially because of his huge, muscular arms; so, of course, I wanted to climb up the strong-man Pokémon to really test its strength. The movers, who were busy organizing and compartmentalizing our stuff in their van, allowed me to play with their Pokémon for a while. It was the best! The Machoke grabbed me while I was scurrying around its back, and started tossing me into the air. The Machoke would throw me up really, really high in the air, and catch me as I was falling.

"Machoke! You're stronger than my dad!" I screamed with glee flying into the air.

The Machoke, also, seemed to enjoy playing with me, and would reciprocate my screams of glee with a big smile. For whatever reason it wouldn't talk back to me; as if it wasn't able to. That didn't bother me any; Machoke was still loads of fun! Unfortunately the fun ended when my Dad saw me through the second-story window of our house flying up while he was packing belongings. He ran down to us out of breath, and told the Machoke to stop goofing around and get back to work.

"Blue, don't bother the Pokémon. He's working," my father admonished, wagging his finger at me.

"But Daddy he's so much fun! Did you see how high he could throw me? He's stronger than you!" I argued, stomping my feet.

"Do as your told, son. I'm going back inside," he retorted in a cold tone.

I honestly couldn't care less what he told me. I ignored what he said, and spent the rest of the afternoon following the strong Pokémon while he was moving our stuff. I was overwhelmed with his strength; he could carry a refrigerator without any help! I followed the Machoke until the movers had to leave. I couldn't believe that I didn't know about Pokémon! They are the coolest!

Chapter 1: Cas Clifford & The Great Escape

"Cas! Are you sure this is going to work?" I whispered to the short kid with long red hair, his red-dragon Pokémon costume flaring behind him.

"Shh, Blue! Operation Coolest Kids in New Bark Town is a go!" replied my pale, freckled friend in his hoarse voice as we continued to hide underneath the aging, white bleachers. _Scaring second graders in Pokémon costumes will make us legends in the eighth grade! Cas is a genius!_

" Hmm...nope! By saying that you are definitely loosing your coolness," I said, snickering. _So what if I was lying. That crazy kid looked fierce in his awesome Charizard costume; almost as scary as my Blastoise costume!_

After I said that, Cas told me to shut up again and focus. We decided to go for it when we saw the middle-aged gym teacher retreat back to his office, leaving his students playing out on the gym floor. We looked at each other, quietly high-fived, and put our masks on. Then we quickly fled our hiding spot behind the bleachers, and ran across the gym in our terrifying Pokémon costumes. We scampered around the gym chasing and scaring as many young children as possible. _This is so awesome!_

"You're done kid. I'm taking to you to Principal Walthorne's office," angrily spoke someone in a gruff voice as they tugged on my costume. _It's Coach! I gotta jet!_ I tried to run away, but lost my footing. Coach held onto my costume and resisted my efforts to run away. _Uh-oh!_

I turned around to see our worst fears had come true; the gym teacher donning his signature cap and sweat suit. _No way! The coach heard the little kids' screaming, and saw us chasing them in our Pokémon costumes. It was over; Coach had caught me! _He started dragging me away out of the gym, and I realized I was going to be in a world of trouble._ I really wish this isn't my first offense! This is really going to suck! _I couldn't see too well because my mask was falling off. I struggled to take it off, (my arms were restricted because of the awesome costume) and saw that Cas was on my left, frowning. He had his Charizad mask in hand, and threw it back into the gym. I could hear several shrill screams. _We can't make it through this if he's all grumpy!_

"Hey! We did it!" I yelled pumping my fist in the air.

He smiled, and turned to give me a high-five me. _Good, now he's not in too bad of a mood now._ _Man, I still can't believe we got caught! Despite Cas being known for the biggest troublemaker in New Bark Gradeschool, he's also a genius – Although I thought he had this all planned out! Usually we don't get caught, and afterwards we are honored as heroes among our friends. I guess that Cas didn't take into account how loud those young kid's screams can be. Regardless, we were going to be remembered for scaring kids in Charizard and Blastoise costumes. The small town of New Bark will be frozen in fear for Cas and Blue are the terrifying duo!_

Coach dragged us all the way to the Principal's office in silence. _I can't believe this guy!_ My butt was starting to hurt from being drug in my cool Pokémon costume – Thankfully it's a small school, so it wasn't much longer until we reached the school's office. He sat us in some chairs out side the principal's office, and sternly instructed us to wait while he was going to talk to the principal. We looked at each other as soon as Coach stepped in the principal's office, and began talking.

"Blue, be cool okay?" remarked my best friend restraining a laugh.

"I'll try my best, dude. You know how cuh-razy I can get!" I replied. We both began laughing uncontrollably. _That guy! What a nimrod! He's the one who always gets us into more trouble with his mouth!_

As soon as the two dumb adults heard us laughing, Coach exited the principal's office. He then drug us one last time inside the principal's office. _What's Coach's deal? Why is he so upset with us? It's not like we hurt any one!_

"This is not a laughing matter, boys!" the chubby, bearded man wearing a black top-hat sitting behind a huge desk bellowed. _I thought he was a principal not a comedian – look at that hat. He can't think that it looks…good._

" I will not stand for…" continued principal Walthorne. I zoned out while he was lecturing us, and stared at his hat. _Why would someone wear this? I can't take him seriously. He should really know better to think that we would actually listen to him. Wait, I better save our butts. I don't want to get in a butt-load of trouble at home!_

"Oh wait sir. I think we have a misunderstanding. See, Cas and I were dressing up as the most recognizable Pokémon because it was our understanding that we were going to educate the second graders on Pokémon during their gym class. I personally apologize that those kids were frightened; that was definitely not our intention. Have you lost some weight? Your hat is looking sharp, sir," I said turning the charm on maximum. Cas nodded in agreement. _I totally got him this time__ hook, line, and sinker! _

"Blue, what are you talking about? This is not a Pokémon school! We educate children, like you punks, in important subjects like history, math, and science. It will lead you to be successful scientists or businessmen. Not to be Pokémon trainers!" the old fart yelled at us, tipping his hat over. I let out a chuckle. _I couldn't resist!_ Then, both of us started laughing hysterically. _That is the _icing_ on the cake!_

"Blue and Cas if you aren't going to take this seriously-" began Walthorne, trying to cease our laughter. _Oh! I got to stop, and save our butts!_

"Sorry, sir! Anyways, I hope this isn't out of line, but who cares, sir? Learning about Pokémon is miles better than learning math," I replied. _Cas is being awfully calm about this. He normally is shouting right about now._

"Blue, I know you and Cas are huge Pokémon fanatics, but please understand this: I. Do. Not. Care. Don't speak or even think Pokémon again while you're here at my school ever again. You two are suspended for the rest of the week!" he roared, cheeks flushed, slamming his hands on his desk, trying his best to be menacing. _Dang it! Good thing today's Thursday, three day weekend!_

Then the overweight principal and bald coach then took away our would-be Halloween costumes. We left school a little dispirited and made our way towards to our homes. Conveniently, it was an hour or two earlier than we would usually get out of school, so I figured my parents weren't going to be home giving me a few hours before receiving my punishment. Cas and I were next-door-neighbors, so we got a chance to talk while on our way to our awaiting doom.

"Ya know for an ugly, old principal, he sure is a mean one, too!" I said, laughing at my own joke. _Cas has been too quiet since we were dragged out of the gym. This is getting weird._

After some awkward moments of silence, Cas finally spoke: "What are you doing tonight, Blue?"

"Uh, being grounded probably, dude," I replied, rolling my eyes. _Obviously!_

"Dang! Well, I guess I might get in trouble too, now that you mention it. But regardless, sneak out tonight around eleven, and meet up with me in my backyard. I've got a great plan to finally become legends in this town," he spoke with a determined look in his eyes. He ended his statement with a subtle smirk.

"What's the plan?" I asked eagerly.

"Oh you'll see! Just meet me behind my house tonight at eleven. Don't be late," he said as we arrived at our cul-de-sac.

"C'mon Cas! Tell me something!" I pleaded.

"No can do, Blue. Just show up tonight, okay?" he replied, patting me on the shoulder.

"Fine!" I said, exasperated. _Why does he do that to me? I only wanted to know, so I can prepare efficiently!_

Cas split to my left entering his two-story red brick house. _I am super excited! Cas' plans are the best! I bet he has something planned that will make us remembered long after we left this boring, small town. Man, I really don't want to go home. I should really just go with Cas, and leave my parents a note or something. The Cliffords moved in around the same time as we did, so they shouldn't be too worried or anything. Nah, better I face this now._

I slowly opened the door to my huge house – Our house was the biggest in New Bark; it's practically a mansion. I started to dread what was lying in wait for me as I slowly opened the front door. When I opened the door I saw the norm when I get in trouble – both of my parents sitting on our couch in the living room looking extremely anxious. My mom, still wearing her clothes from the bank, was already crying, and my dad was cleaning his glasses with his bleach-white lab coat. _I hate that the school always calls them before I get home! _

"Son, I can't believe you!" began my dad, standing up from the couch. His white hair was ruffled. _This is going to be painful._

"Imagine this, if you will. I'm at work researching a new anti-venom for an Arbok bite, and I get a call from your school saying you're dressed up as a Blastoise scaring children! Blue, you're doing a hell of a job at that school, do you know that? I work at the Pokemon Laboratory to make people feel safe from Pokémon! You're making your parents and my research look like a joke! How can I make people feel safe from Pokémon when you're running around scaring people as a Pokémon!" he shouted, his words piercing my conscience.

"I didn't realize. I'm sor- "

"It won't work this time, Blue! We're done. I don't think you realize what will happen if you don't straighten up. So we're sending you away! You're going to a private boarding school in Violet City. It's far away from that awful Cas Clifford!" he continued getting flushed.

"I can't believe you're sending me away! You don't care what I want!" I shouted in disagreement.

"It's not for you to decide! We're doing this because of how you're affecting my work and how it's affecting your future. We want you to prosper, not to become something you'll regret," my father explained, walking over placing his hand on my shoulder.

"It's really for the best, honey, even if it seems harsh," Mom murmured while crying even harder than before.

"Whatever. It's not like I have a say in anything! I don't want to go to a different school! I want to be a Pokémon trainer, and you know it!" I retorted, removing my father's hand off me.

"I fear that, son. You don't realize the risks in becoming a trainer, and besides, you'll struggle to live the rest of your life. Do you really, truly, honestly want that?" he questioned in a calmer tone.

"Yes, Dad, I do! I have wanted that ever since we moved here nine years ago!" I exclaimed.

"You'll become a trainer if you continue to behave like a heathen or flunk out! You'll live in squalor the rest of your life, struggling to get by. We don't want that for you Blue, trust us!" claimed my father.

"I don't care about money or any of that! I want to become a legendary trainer: a Champion!" I shouted.

"Well, that's not up to you to. You're going to Violet City for education, so you can be successful, and live a happy, productive life. We're dropping you off in a couple of days," continued Dad, looking to Mom.

"I hate you!" I screamed directly at my father's face. I stormed out of the room, and trudged into my room upstairs. _What the heck is this? How can they just do this to me? They don't even care as to what I want to do. They just want me to make money and all that boring, normal stuff._

I stared at the posters of Pokémon League Champions on my wall, while lying on my bed. I focused on one poster specifically; it had a picture of the Champion Ross Whet with smaller pictures of the Pokemon he won with. _God, look at him! He looks so happy, and even his Pokemon look happy. _ _I will never get to be him. I will never get a chance to catch Pokémon. I will never get the thrill of battle. I won't get the chance to make a name for myself. I won't be __**legendary**__. Man, I really hope Cas has something great up his sleeve. This might be the last time I see him after all._ I set my alarm clock, and then fell asleep shortly after thinking more about what Cas could possible have planned for tonight and setting my digital alarm clock.

_ "_Pokemon! Gotta catch 'em all! It's you and me, I know it's my destiny!" sang my alarm clock. _I hate that song!_ I thought turning it off.

I awoke startled around eleven o'clock to the lame pop pokemon song. _That makes __Pokémon__ less cool._ It took me a while to get myself together, and then I walked carefully downstairs. I brought my backpack with me, and packed inside were the essentials. I made sure to be extra careful going down the stairs, and avoided the extra-creaky third-from-the-bottom-stair. Downstairs looked normal, except it was all in the dark. I could make out outlines of furniture to avoid. My parents were asleep in their room that was underneath the stairs, so I was golden unless I managed to hit or step on something while making my way to the backyard door. I creeped around making sure to be quiet reaching the sliding door to the backyard.

Once I got outside, I made sure to keep the door unlocked and to close it gently. I looked around the backyard, and walked over to the fence on the left. It was a short, white fence, so I had no problem climbing over it. There wasn't much crime in New Bark Town, so security isn't a main concern of the citizens here. I spotted a shadow in the back of Cas' backyard.

"Hey, is that you Cas?" I whispered.

"Geez, dude. Could you have been any later? Its eleven twenty, now. We have got to hustle if this is going to work now," responded Cas stepping closer to me. He punched me in the arm. _Ouch!_

"Yeah, sorry about that, Cas. I had a huge fight with my Dad after I got home, and passed out afterwards. So, uh, what's the plan?"

"We're getting the heck out of here, dude. I'm tired of this lame town. There's nothing to do here, and there's no way we can be awesome here. But first we need to make a pit stop at the Pokémon lab your dad works," explained my best friend.

"Oh, right on! I'm so ready. But why are we stopping at my Dad's work, Cas?" I asked out of curiousity.

"I have to get something important from there, Blue. And we're leaving our marks on this Arceus-forsaken town!" he replied, looking agitated.

We hopped over his fence, and I followed him to the Pokemon Lab. We were moving at a slow pace; hiding behind trees and other stuff on our way there. _I guess Cas wanted to make sure we weren't seen. I shouldn't bother asking him, though. He seems a little bit off than usual. I'm hoping this will be quick, and I can get on with a new, awesome life._

"Here it is! Okay, so here's the battle plan," said Cas as we hid behind a wide tree.

"Battle plan?" I asked, confused.

"I, uh, mean plan. Now shuddap, and listen! I stole an I.D. card from some dupe that works at the lab earlier this week, and I'm going to sneak in there real quick to grab something. I'll be right out. You need to stay here and keep watch, Blue," explained Cas, showing me the I.D. card.

"So cool! This is totally like the movies! Why can't I come with you? There's strength in numbers!" I said attempting to convince him.

"Blue. Stop talking. We can't afford to have someone hear you blabbing, and ruin our whole mission. I'm going, and you're staying. That's that," he replied dead-serious.

"Fine.." I mumbled.

I watched as Cas hunched over tip-toeing his way to the large, glass door entrance to the lab. He pulled out a card out of his blue jeans and held it up to the scanner. A red light shot out and scanned the card. He then carefully made his way into the Pokémon lab. _Why does Cas get to have all the fun?_ _The lab door only opens if you have an I.D. card; I wonder how Cas figured that out. I've only been here a handful of times with grumpy Dad, and I've never really talked much about it. The visits were a real bore-fest. _

After I was sure that Cas was deep into the lab, I made my way closer to the entrance. I found a bush somewhat near the door, and hid behind it. _This is making me itchy! But I better just keep an eye out; I really want to get out of here!_

Nothing happened for a good fifteen minutes. Then, I heard something I wasn't expecting: a scream. It wasn't Cas' scream either; it sounded like a grown man's scream. It was much deeper than what a teenager could manage. _What the heck! What is Cas doing in there? I need to check this out!_

I looked around where I was hiding, and found a nice sized rock. I took it, and slammed it into a window behind me. It cracked the window, and then I threw it inside breaking it completely. I crept inside the broken window, and did my best to avoid stepping on the broken glass. A moment later a loud alarm went off. _Oh man! I really messed up now! I have got to find Cas, and get the heck out of here!_

After I realized I was in an office (I bumped into a desk), I found the door by feeling it with my hands. I opened it slightly, and peered through it. I couldn't see much, but down the hall I could see a sliver of light coming from a room. I quietly walked to where the light was coming from. I went up to the door hoping to hear something, but I could only hear someone mumbling. I opened the door a little to peek what was going on.

I first saw Cas with his back faced to me. His black t-shirt had blood on it for some reason, though. I opened it a little more, and saw something by his side. It was only, like, a foot tall, and it was olive green. It had a small horn. _IT'S A POKEMON!_

I fully opened the door now. It creaked, and Cas turned to face me. Then I saw something awful. It was some lab-worker hunched over on the floor in a puddle of blood. _This is worse than I expected!_

"What is going on?" I yelled at Cas as I ran over to the body. 

I flipped the body over to see its face. _DAD? _

"Cas! You killed my dad!" I yelled turning around to face my former-best friend and the little Pokémon. I noticed it had blood on its small claws.

"Dude! You can't go around murdering people – especially my dad!" I shouted holding back my tears. I was feeling over-whelmed with emotion.

"Tsk, tsk, Blue. I distinctly told you to stay outside and keep watch. But you decided to make a huge mistake. You left, broke into the lab, set off the alarm, and now you're a witness to a murder. This is a shame, Blue," spoke Cas calmly.

Then, the green Pokémon rushed me, and hit me in the gut with its head.

"Oof! You'll be sorry…" I uttered.

My eyes got heavy, and I felt like I got my breath taken out of me. I couldn't keep them open despite the blaring alarm. I fell to the slick ground, right next to my father's body. _I am going to kill Cas Clifford!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Birth by Blood**

Something was nudging my side. _Mom, I'm suspended. You don't have to wake me up early._ I opened my eyes, and stretched my arms. _Why am I wet? _I looked at my arms and saw they were covered in blood. _Oh no! It wasn't a nightmare!_ At this discovery I realized that the alarm was turned off, and that here was a tall man dressed in a brown trench coat looking down upon me. _Ugh. I feel really wet all over. _ I stood up, and looked to the ground where I was asleep. _I'm wet. I'm wet from blood! I'm wet from my father's blood!_

I let out an unnerving scream: "Dad!"_I was hoping that last night was a crazy dream. I think this guy who woke me with his foot must be a cop or something._

"He's not waking up, son," spoke the stranger.

I stood up, and turned around facing the unknown person. He was a rather thin man (his face , despite wearing a large trench coat, with a bushy, brown mustache. He looked tired too; he had bags under his eyes.

"I'm detective Frederickson from Goldenrod City. I was rushed over here when we got the report late last night of homicide, breaking and entering, and assault and battery. And you are?"said the detective placing his hand on my shoulder. _Detective from Goldenrod?_

He stepped around me to look at my father's body. He pointed out a large wound in his gut to me.

"That is not a death-blow from a gun or a knife. It looks like he was probably murdered by a Pokémon. Now, I have some very pressing questions for you; it would be in your best interest to answer them, and answer them honestly. What do you know about this? Who are you? And most importantly what are you doing here?" he asked with a stern face, stepping away from the body and facing me again.

"Take a good hard look, detective. Do you recognize me? I'm Blue Slade - I'm the dead guy's son! See the resemblance? And check out my arm!" I exclaimed. I then lifted up my blood soaked shirt to show where the Pokémon attacked me, and I winced in pain.

"Hmm. You're right. Sorry, kid," replied detective Frederickson after a couple of double takes between the body and me.

"Yeah, thanks a ton, mister," I muttered.

"Hmm. Well, despite that, you still have some questions to answer. 1. Why are you in this Pokémon lab? 2. Why did you break into here? 3. Why was your father in the lab at such an odd hour? 4. Do you have any idea who did this?" questioned the gaunt detective

I squinched up my face with rage. _I do not want to answer this guy's questions. __I want to get out of here. I want to go home. I do not want to ever come in here again._

"Look mister. I'll tell you what happened, but do me a favor and catch the guy, okay?" I replied politely.

"We'll give it a try, son. There's not a whole lot of evidence here to work with," said the detective avoiding eye contact by staring at the dead body.

"Whatever that means…Anyways, forget this; I'm going home!" I exclaimed, storming off towards the room's door.

"Hey there! Hold it there, kid! You are not leaving the scene of the crime until I get some answers," he barked.

I turned around quickly, and now angrier than before. "Fine, I'll answer your stupid, dumb questions. In all honesty I'm still reeling from what went down, but here it goes. Like I said earlier, I'm Blue Slade. And that guy on the floor is my old man. He worked, here, at the Pokémon lab as a some sort of Pokemon researcher – Although I don't remember what kind of research he did. My former friend and neighbor Cas Clifford talked me into sneaking out of my house, and then, come here for some unknown reason. He was astonishingly vague as to what we were going to doing here, but I came anyways. When we got here, he told me to wait outside to keep an eye out; while he would do this, I guess, in here. After waiting around for a good while, I heard a loud, chilling scream from inside the lab. I wasn't sure what was going on in here, so I broke inside through a window because I wanted to make sure everything was okay. I ran into this room, and found Cas and some small, green horned Pokémon in this room with some lab worker laying on the ground with his stomach on the floor. I didn't know who it was at first; until I flipped it over to see it was my Dad. I freaked out, and then Cas then sicked his Pokémon on me. Now I'm here, talking to you soaked in my Dad's blood. I honestly had no clue that it was going to turn out this way; he wouldn't tell me what he was planning,"I explained, a little winded. _Man, it sucks so much having to actually talk about this; it is real. It is forever embedded in my mind. Dad, you won't be forgotten!_

"Alright, son. I can actually believe you on this. I found that rock, and you being knocked out before when the cops got here all fits. It sounds like you had one helluva rough night. I'm going to get the ambulance on the phone, and they're going to come and check you out. After that you can get on going home. You'll be all clear here," he replied, and patted me on the head.

"I am not your son! Stop calling me that! If you weren't paying attention, that's my dad, there, dead on the floor!" I cried running out of the lab.

I exited out of the back of the Pokemon lab, and avoided the few police officers I came across. After some distance away from the lab, I ditched my bloody shirt, and ran the rest of the way to my house. _Thank Arceus it's early! I don't have to worry too much about anyone seeing me! _I thought while running around at daybreak. It wasn't too far of a trek, but it was horrible - I cried the whole time. My tears were making it hard to see where I was going. It felt like a matter of seconds when I reached home. _I wonder if Mom knows._

I opened the wide, french doors of my house expecting to see my Mom bawling, yet she wasn't home. I walked around calling for her, but to no avail. I gave up, and walked into the kitchen to grab something to eat. While eating loads of food, I happened across a note sitting on the kitchen counter.

"Blue, I know what happened last night. Do not worry; I'm not mad at you. It's not your fault; it's just a horrible incident. I just can't believe that your father is dead! I'm going to the police station right now, and after that I'll have to talk to some detectives about their investigation. I think I'm going to be busy all day, so there's a good chance I won't be home until much, much later. Please do not leave the house, hun.

Love, Mom"

_ Okay, I guess this isn't a dream. I'm going to throw away these clothes now. I'm going to take a shower, too._ I spent a couple of hours getting clean, (it couldn't take all the soap in the world to clean me of Dad's blood) and trying to get my head around every crazy thing that happened. After laying around thinking, I decided I couldn't take it being home alone like this, and took off to the lab. _I want to talk to Glenn, dad's co-worker._

I spotted my Dad's friend and fellow researcher outside speaking to a cop as I arrived at the Pokémon lab. He was a much huskier guy than my Dad, and had blonde hair and a thick beard. Glenn was always kind to me every time I saw him – which wasn't very often. He looked over to me while he was still speaking with the police officer. After he finished speaking to the cop, he walked over to where I was standing.

"Blue! By Arceus! I thank the Pokémon-gods you're alright! If there's anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask." he said, hugging me close. _I have a great idea!_

"Hey, thanks Mr. Glenn. I actually came over here looking for you. I wanted to ask if you knew why my Dad was doing here last night. He usually is home by that time, ya know?" I spoke after the lab worker released me from his bear-hug.

"I figured as much, Blue. I ran into him as I was leaving for the day; he told me that he wanted to make up for lost time because he felt like he was near a break-through on Arbok anti-venom. It's a shame he felt like he had to continue his research," explained Glenn.

"Dang! It's all my fault! If I hadn't gotten into trouble yesterday, then he wouldn't have come home early!" I exclaimed, and stared at my feet. _I am such an awful son!_

"Blue! Please don't think of it that way! I think that if he even didn't have to leave early that he still would've been here last night – He was so driven," Glenn spoke shaking my shoulders.

"I guess you're right, Glenn. It's just I feel so horrible about this whole thing; I wish there was some way I could make it up to my Dad!" I said looking Glenn right into his big, blue eyes.

"I think your father would've liked it if you pursued your dreams, Blue," he responded with a comforting smile.

"Well, in that case I think there's one more thing you can do for me. It's going to sound crazy, but, please, here me out, Mr. Glenn. I have always wanted to be a Pokemon trainer ever since I was little. So I want a Pokémon for protection, and I know that the Pokémon lab has them. And...that's where Cas got his. Besides, I really don't think I can stay in this town after what happened last night. I, also, think that if you get me a Pokémon, I can bring Cas to justice," I said with a puppy-dog face.

"Well, Blue, the detective I spoke to earlier said he got everything all covered," he told me frowningly.

"Are you serious? I already spoke to that guy; he was the one who found me. He told me there wasn't any solid evidence! I doubt they're going to be actively looking for Cas! I can look for Cas if you give me a Pokémon to protect me while I search. Please, Glenn?" I spoke with determination.

"This is a research facility. We aren't supposed to give away Pokémon without proper approval from the government…" he mumbled.

"Glenn, c'mon! My Dad would've wanted this. He would've wanted me to be protected." I argued defiantly.

He studied me intently for a second, and I could tell his resolve weakening. "You know, you're right. If I can help you right this evil, it'll be worth it. I'll go inside and pick you a good one. If the police ask I'll just say that evil brat stole this one, too. I'll be right back with one," he whispered.

_Oh man! Oh man! Oh man! I can't believe this is going to happen. My very first Pokémon! I guess there's some good out of the bad! Who says that something good can't come from tragedy?_

A few minutes passed by while I stood against a tree, and then I spotted Glenn hastily walking out of the lab. I tried to stay out of the line of sight of the cops, but I knew Glenn remembered where I was. He was walking to me constantly looking around and had his hands in his pockets. _Glenn is doing a fabulous job of looking suspicious!_

Glenn approached me, and took two items out of his pockets. In one hand was a red and white ball with a central white button, and a black stripe outside of the white part that goes around the entire ball. It was about the size of a golf ball. In the other hand was a slightly larger metallic-red rectangular object.

He handed me the ball, and said: "Blue, this is called a poke ball. It holds a Pokémon inside. They can, also, be used to capture wild Pokémon. If you press the center button, you can release the Pokémon inside."

As soon as Glenn finished, I quickly pressed the button he instructed. Immediately a red light shot out like lightning from the poke ball and hit the ground in front of me. Something was quickly appearing on the ground as the red light faded. The red light retracted back to the poke ball, and left a short, blue creature standing in front of me smiling toothily. It was an aligator-looking creature standing on two legs with a short snout revealing numerous small, sharp-looking teeth in its mouth. The Pokemon had small, red spikes from its back to its tail. Its chest was beige, and was the only other part besides the spikes that weren't blue. It waddled over to me, and its head reached my waist. It looked up at me with its large eyes with a small red pupil. It had short, stubby arms that had sharp-looking claws. _I have my first Pokémon!_

"This Pokémon is called a Totodile. They're known for being feisty Pokémon, but this one is extra feisty for its species. I also grabbed one of these for you," Glenn informed me, then handing me the red square device.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Open it, Blue. It's called a pokedex," replied the kind lab worker.

I did as Glenn said, and it opened like a book with the closed poke ball still in my hand. On the right side was a blank screen, and on top of the screen was a black square. The black square shot out a laser that hit me right in the eye.

"Ahh! What is this?"I shouted.

"SEARCHING. NEW TRAINER SEARCHING," spoke the device in a robotic voice.

"BLUE SLADE. MALE. AGE 13. HOMETOWN: NEW BARK TOWN. TRAINER NUMBER 371026," continued the pokedex.

"Swell job, Blue! You're officially a trainer now. The pokedex has registered you in the Johto trainer database. It is a device that is a Pokemon encyclopedia; trainers use it to scan Pokémon. It also records what Pokémon you come across. The pokedex is extremely handy for trainers; when you scan a Pokémon it tells the trainer basic facts about the Pokémon. It, also, registers all of your Pokémon with your trainer I.D," explained Glenn, nodding his head as he spoke.

"What? Register? How?" I asked, overwhelmed with new information.

"Yeah, Blue. I hope I didn't overwhelm you." He chuckled.

"When someone opens a pokedex for the first time a laser is shot out. Don't freak out, it'll be the last time. When the laser scanned your eye, the pokedex wirelessly searched census records for your information. It also reads the electro-psyonic waves that a poke ball emits when thrown from a trainer, and registers it to a database with its own Pokémon I.D. number that stems from its trainer's I.D. number," continued Glenn.

"Huh?" I replied, scratching my head.

"Basically, it keeps record of what Pokémon you caught. To scan the Totodile just point your pokedex towards it, and it should be able get a good read. Then after that, you might want to return it to its poke ball, so the pokedex can completely register it to you," instructed Glenn.

_I didn't really understand all the science-y talk that was going on, but I'm so excited to have my own little fighter! We are going to kick so much butt! And we'll avenge Dad, too.._

I pointed the device at Totodile, and it displayed an image of Totodile along with its height, weight, and other descriptions. And my pokedex spoke once more: "TOTODILE, BIG JAW POKEMON. ITS POWERFUL, WELL-DEVELOPED JAWS ARE CAPABLE OF CRUSHING ANYTHING. EVEN ITS TRAINER MUST BE CAREFUL."

"So cool! My Pokémon is a biter!" I declared.

"Careful now, Blue. Don't forget you're taking care of that Pokémon as well as battling with it. It will need looking out for as much as you! You ought to return it now, so we won't make a scene. To do so say 'Return Totodile', and point your poke ball at it," directed Glenn.

"Return Totodile," I spoke doing exactly as I was instructed. The red lightning shot out and my newly acquired Pokémon retreated back to its poke ball.

"Splendid, Blue! You're a full-fledged trainer now! Oh and before I forget, two more things I need to tell you! One being that each Pokémon has its type and you'll read about that in the pokedex after scanning a Pokémon. There are seventeen different types of Pokémon, and each has their own strengths and weaknesses. That Totodile there is a water type Pokémon, so it is strong against fire, rock, and ground Pokémon. But it is weak against grass and electric Pokémon, so fight carefully against those. The other thing I want to share with you is, that your pokedex is critical to your survival as a trainer. Do not lose it! It contains your very own unique trainer I.D. and that is used to gain access to your trainer account on a P.C. That's really all I can say right now; I got to get back to the lab before they start looking for me for questioning again. I don't want to look too suspicious, now do I?" he said glowing.

"Glenn I don't think I can thank you enough for everything. I'm going to make you and my Dad proud! I'm going to take the totodile out, so he can say goodbye to you," I said beaming.

I pressed the button, and out came the blue reptile Pokémon. It looked incredibly excited to be outside the poke ball.

"Oh I guess I forgot to mention this. You can actually throw a poke ball that has a Pokémon inside, and it will be released. I believe that's what most trainers do," informed Glenn.

"I like the sound of that! Thanks, Glenn! Now say goodbye to Glenn!" I said crouching down, facing the totodile Pokemon.

Instead of it giving some sort of farewell to Glenn it bit my hand! "Yeouch!" I yelped. _That really freaking hurt, but based on what the pokedex said it wasn't a full-power bite. It probably could rip my hand off if it wanted!_

"Told you he was feisty!" he said laughing. He helped pull the little Pokémon off me.

"Man, that really hurt! I'm glad that wasn't a full power chomp! I can see why it's called 'Big Jaw Pokémon'. Hmm..I think I'm gonna call him Jaws! How do you like that..Jaws?" I asked the totodile, holding my hand.

He kind of smiled, and snapped his jaw a couple of times in reply.

"Looks like a yes to me!" I exclaimed.

"Alright, Blue and Jaws! Sounds like the makings of a formidable team! I bet you'll be a Champion in no time!" he said, laughing again.

"Thanks again, Glenn!" I said, shaking his hand.

"You're welcome! Where to now? You should get gym badges if you want to be a trainer. There's a gym in nearly every town in Johto," he replied.

"Then if you get all eight in Johto I am eligible to enter the Pokémon League Tournament, right?" I asked.

"Correct, Blue! If you make it that far, I'm sure I'll see you on the T.V. I know you can do it. Look at you! Even in the wake of your father's death you have a can-do spirit! I'll be eager to hear news from you!" he said smiling.

_I almost forgot! I got too excited about getting a new Pokémon! Man, I'm going to miss that fun-sucker, but now I can prove that Pokémon will be more than fun. I'll be able to track down Cas, and take him down. We'll get him good with Jaws!_

I thanked Glen for the third time, and returned Jaws to his poke ball. I returned him because I didn't want people to think I stole a Pokémon like my former best-friend. I walked back home thinking about all the new, exciting, and horrible things that entered my life_. I got suspended from school, snuck out of the house, broke into a Pokémon lab, got knocked out by a Pokémon, found out my dad was murdered, and got a Pokémon. One positive out of so many negatives. Stop! Look at how lucky you are right now! Didn't get killed, and got a chance to revenge my father!_

When I reached home, I looked around for Mom again. She still wasn't home, so I decided to let Jaws out. _He probably could go for some air_.

"Hi Jaws! I'm Blue. I need you to be calm in here while I get prepared for our adventure," I spoke to the Pokemon.

Instead of really listening to me, Jaws sped off from the foyer. He was jumping around, and gnawing on our furniture. _I have got to jet before Mom gets home. She'll kill me on spot with this crazy thing._

I let Jaws do his thing while I climbed the stairs and took a shower. Afterwards, I started packing my school backpack with clothes and some other essentials. My backpack was in great shape, mostly because I rarely used it. It was early August, so I packed plenty of summer clothes. After I was finished, I turned around to find Jaws behind me just grinning.

"So after that bite we're friends now?" then I made a slow approach to Jaw's head with my hand. I rubbed it cautiously. _He didn't snap! __It's scales feel really moist; that's kind of gross._

I went back downstairs with Jaws tagging along, and I remembered I needed money. I only had a few bucks in my wallet. _Wait! Mom has a safe here, in her room. I'm sure she'll understand I'll need some of it to be a trainer._

We made our way inside my parent's room one last time. _It feels so weird to be in the same room that my Dad used to sleep in. He'll never go in this room again. This is so uncomfortable._ I saw my parent's safe tucked underneath a dresser. The small gray safe had an electronic password set up. I wracked my brain for a good password. I tried 'Pokémon', but no dice. Next I tried my name. Ding-dong. The safe slightly opened. I pulled it open to find a huge stash of cash. I figured I shouldn't take too much, but enough to get me going for a while. I took out a thousand dollars. _I've never been so rich! Cue evil laugh!_

_I am starved. I haven't eaten in a long time!_ I noticed my stomach was growling. Jaws looked at my belly weird, and thought it was another Pokémon probably! We headed to the kitchen, and I fixed us a PB&J. I gave him half my sandwich, and he wolfed it down no problem. I made, like, ten more to stuff into my backpack for later.

As we were making our way out of my house for the last time, I realized something. _Jaws is too cute! I need to make him look intimidating._ I scanned the living room for something to beef up his look. Then I spotted it. I ran over to my dad's sunglasses on the coffee table next to the couch. _He always put them there. _

"Jaws! Check this out. These are shades, you wear them like this." I put the black sunglasses on my face. Jaws started jumping up and down. I picked it up, and placed them on my small companion's alligator face. Surprisingly it fit okay. At first he shook his head and threw them on the ground.

"Jaws! Now that's not good. Don't do that. Those were my Dad's and they mean a lot to me. I want you to wear them; you'll remind me of my dad by wearing them, too! It'll make you look super cool!" I exclaimed.

As if Jaws understood the words coming out of my mouth, he let me place the sunglasses on his face once more. This time he was acting calmer, and let them sit on his face. _I thought this was going to be a bad idea, but Jaws seriously looks pretty cool._

I started double checking all my stuff. I made sure to grab a water bottle. And, I also remembered my mom. I hastily wrote a note saying that I took off, but I'm off to bring Cas to jail or something. And I apologized for taking money, but I needed it. _I'm surprised how crazy everything has been so far. I better return that little guy back in his ball before I leave. I don't need anyone seeing him, and causing a scene._

There was only one way out of New Bark Town, and that was to the North. It was Route 29. I left the house with Jaws' pokeball in my hand. _Here I come Pokémon League, and Cas!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: From Under The Berry Tree**

Not even a mile away from New Bark Town, I was already making my first steps on Route 29. I took a second to look back to my hometown and say my silent good-byes before walking any further. _I'm gonna miss you Mom, but this is really for the best.._

The sad thoughts fled my mind when I refocused back on my upcoming trek. Route 29 was like what I imagined. There was a dusty, gravel path that led its follower to another city. _I think I remember someone telling me Cherrygrove City was the nearest city to New Bark Town. Or was it Berrygrove? _The rest of the route was a grassy terrain with dense bushes and tall trees dispersed throughout. The sun shining down made it look very peaceful.

As Jaws and I were walking down the path, we spotted wild Pokémon. _Ah yeah! Now I see why my parents didn't want me coming here, look at all these Pokémon! _I saw a large variety of creatures, and even a slightly distressing scene of some small, purple rat Pokémon getting chased by slightly larger red birds. I looked up and could see small brown bird Pokémon taking to the sky. There were even smaller green caterpillar and yellow horned bugs crawling around on trees and the ground. _I want to catch them all! _

Then I remembered I only had one pokeball and it was Jaws'. _Hmm. I wonder if since Jaws is already out of his pokeball I can use it to catch another Pokémon. And, then, when I get to Berrygrove I can buy some more balls, and give Jaws a new one. Yeah, that's gotta work!_

As we continued down the path I scanned the area for a new Pokémon companion. _I need a strong Pokémon to join my team. It would be nice if I could find something similar to Jaws._ As if the pokemon-god, Arceus, heard my thoughts a purple rat pokemon was roaming around near some bushes in front of me.

"That's it! Look it has little fangs! It'll totally go with the whole biting-theme like Jaws!" I declared.

Jaws, still at my side, looked up at me and frowned.

"No, no, no Jaws! I wasn't saying it'd replace you! You're my number one Pokémon!" I said, smiling at my reptilian Pokémon.

Jaws responded by bubbling at the mouth and rubbing his head on my legs.

"Eww! Stop, Jaws!"

_Okay, someone's had enough Blue-time. _I zapped him back to his pokeball. As soon as Jaws vanished, I immediately wiped his affectionate slime off my leg. _Phew! Now back to that rat. _I looked around where I spot it last, and it wasn't there.

"I guess it moved on. Rats!" I said laughing at my own joke. _I miss having someone laughing at my jokes. _I then let out a sigh.

I decided to let out Jaws a couple minutes later because I was feeling lonely. Jaws was excited to be let out of his pokeball. He jumped up on my shoulders and yelped with glee. _Wow! I didn't think he could jump that high!_ I let him stay on my shoulders because he wasn't all that heavy. Jaws' energy was infectious, and I picked up my pace.

After walking for a couple of hours down the path, we came across another rat Pokémon nestled up underneath a shady tree. It looked like it was enjoying a nice nap. It wasn't too far from the path, so I wasn't worried about getting lost. _Perfect! Scan it, and then capture it!_

I took out my pokedex, and pointed it at the resting rat. The pokedex spoke in its monotone voice: "RATTATA – MOUSE POKEMON. IT EATS ANYTHING. WHEREVER FOOD IS AVAILABLE, IT WILL SETTLE DOWN AND PRODUCE OFFSPRING CONTINUOUSLY."

"Sweet, a scrapper!" I replied.

I read some additional information on rattata, and then I set Jaws down off my shoulder. _I think Jaws should be able to handle this rattata. He has a bigger mouth and a little height on it._

"Okay Jaws, here's the deal. I have no clue what so ever how to make you attack or anything, so work with me okay?" I said crouching looking straight at Jaws.

Jaws tilted his head slightly in confusion.

"Okay. Sic 'em, Jaws!" I yelled, pointing to the sleeping rattata.

Jaws didn't move from my side, but he did look at his opponent lazily.

"Uh, attack!" I said with less confidence, a little befuddled at his hesitance.

Jaws then started running towards the lounging rattata. Once he was face-to-face with his opponent, he gave a hard scratch with his right claw. I could see red marks on the enemy's side from the attack. _Note to self: Jaws can scratch._ This woke the rattata up right away, and it howled in pain.

"Keep it up, Jaws!" I yelled at my Pokémon.

Jaws looked back at me, and grinned like you see when a toddler does something and the parents encourage it. I chuckled slightly at my Pokémon's reaction. However, the rattata took this as an opportunity to strike. It tackled the oblivious Jaws, and started scratching his stomach. _Now or never!_ I took Jaws' pokeball and threw it at the wild Pokémon that was now on top of Jaws. I hit the rattata on the head with the pokeball, and it toppled over backwards off of Jaws.

"Score!" I shouted, pumping my fist in the air.

As Jaws was recollecting himself, a red light shot out of the opened pokeball. It hit Jaws, and he vanished back to his prison. Luckily, the device bounced back to me like Glenn had suggested.

"What?" I yelled in confusion.

_I successfully lost my first Pokémon battle by accidentally returning my own Pokémon! Who does that? I can't ever tell anyone about this. _The rattata, still a little dazed from the hit on the head, slowly got back on its feet. Soon after it noticed its enemy was gone, it spotted me. It let out a shrill call, and continued to angrily stare me down. _Why is it just standing there? I should probably get back to the path.. _I started stepping backwards very slowly in hoping to not set it off. Before I knew it I heard several growls and other rattatas meeting up with its injured brother. There was a whole pack of them, like, twelve all snarling at me. I continued to back away slowly, and then I jolted out of there. _I wonder if I'm the only trainer that goes through this?_

I could see the path and it wasn't too far. I looked behind me as I was running, and the rattatas were gaining on me. _Those rats are fast! I need to go faster._ A sudden surge of adrenaline hit me, and I started running for my life. _I don't think I've ever ran this fast before! I bet I could've been on the track team! Wait, focus Blue! Run!_

After a continued spring, one of the rattatas finally caught up with me. I could feel it trying to claw at the back of my heels. It then made a wild jump at me while I was still running and sank its small but still very sharp fangs into the back of my left calf.

"Ow!" I bellowed in pain.

_Don't stop. Can't stop. All those things will kill you if you don't...stop. Don't stop running. _As much as it hurt when it bit me, I was able to reach back and flung the evil rat off me. I heard it screech as I continued running. _That was almost worth it. _

I didn't stop running for what seemed like hours, and I finally had to stop. I had to catch my breath. I looked behind me in fear, and to my surprise the wild rattatas gave up the chase.

"Ah, thank the Pokémon-gods!" I shouted to the air, panting hard.

The sun was setting, and I decided to make the rest of the trek to the city. I didn't have a tent or anything, so I figured that would be my best bet. Night had fallen after an hour of more walking. _My leg kinda hurts. I sure hope Berrygrove is close!_

My despair left me when I saw city lights on the horizon. I managed to run the rest of the way to the city. Upon entering the city I saw a small sign reading "Welcome to Cherrygrove City". _Whoops! _The city was substantially bigger than New Bark Town. I could see street lights illuminating cars still driving around. There were some big buildings, and that was also new to me. Despite all that it still had trees and other plant life in the city; kind of like New Bark.

I walked for a couple minutes in the lively city, and I finally came across somewhere to stay. It was a dinky motel that looked like it had been around way longer than me. It had a neon sign that read "Bushy ed Inn" in all green letters with a picture of someone sleeping on a bed on the right and a picture of a bush on the left. Upon closer inspection I noticed it read "Bushy Bed Inn", which made a lot more sense. _I don't wanna walk anymore. It looks a little shady, but what the hay. _

I walked inside the run-down inn, and saw an old man sitting behind the front desk. _He looks as bad as the place!_

"How much for a night?" I could barely pant out the words.

"Heh. Tiwed, boy? It looks like we have one woom – yo lucky day! It'll be fifty dollars, spowt." he said revealing his toothless grin.

_I don't care if I'm getting ripped off. I just want a bed!_ I handed the ugly old man my money, and he handed me a key to the room.

"Room 202. Second flo', first do' at the wight."

"Uh, cool. Thanks." I said taking off to the nearest stairwell.

I noticed my leg wasn't hurting anymore and it stopped bleeding while I was climbing the stairs. The whole building smelled funky and somewhat like old people, though, which I found somewhat concerning. I found my room, and quickly opened the door. I threw my backpack to the floor, and jumped into the bed. I didn't bother releasing Jaws from his pokeball or even brushing my teeth. _What a terrible day. Maybe I should go back to New Bark tomorrow. I don't know if I have what it takes. _My heavy eyelids finally shut. _I'll worry about it tomorrow…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: New Friends**

A strip of warm sunshine hit my face, and caused a slow awakening. I groggily sat up on my bed, and tried to find where the light was coming from. To my right was a window covered with slightly broken blinds; the light was creeping through one of the empty spots. Then I tried to remember where I am. _Dad killed...got Jaws...left home...butt kicked by rattatas...all because of Cas._ I laid back in bed wallowing in my defeat. _How am I going to do this? Yesterday was a joke! _

I decided to get up instead of dwelling on my failures anymore. I saw my backpack slumped over on the floor next to a dusty, empty dresser. _I was too tired to unpack anything last night._ I shuffled over to my backpack, and took out one of my PB&J sandwiches. _Wait! What about Jaws? I bet he's starved! I left him in his Pokéball! _I reached down into my backpack and found the brightly colored ball underneath some clothes.

"Jaws, come on out buddy!" I mumbled, releasing him from his round prison.

Jaws looked a little groggy himself. He let out a huge yawn.

"Ha! I didn't think you could get tired!" I said smirking.

He noticed I had a sandwich out, and instantly started snapping his jaws.

"Hungry?" I said unwrapping the sandwich and sitting on the floor next to my companion.

The groggy Pokémon slowly opened his mouth, waiting for me to feed him. I handed him half of my PB&J. In one motion Jaws ate his whole breakfast. He tossed his half in the air, and caught it in his mouth. After he chewed a couple of times and swallowed, he smacked his lips as if to say "I really enjoyed that!"

"Yeah Jaws. These PB&J's are tasty!" I said while wolfing down my half of the sandwich.

I rubbed my stomach after I finished eating. _Ah! Much better! _I took a deep breath and stretched my arms out. _Whoa! Is that smell me?_ I sniffed my armpits in disbelief. _I'm really stinky. I should really take a shower. _I looked over at my now stuffed Pokémon; he was sitting down across from me. He was just staring at me, and it looked like he was trying to wake up as well. _I bet a good shower would do us both wonders!_

"Hey Jaws, I think I'm going to take a shower. The pokedex said something about you being a water Pokémon, so maybe you'd like a dip," I informed him, standing up off the floor.

_This could be a bad idea. Maybe I should just return him back to his pokeball while I take a shower. What if he comes to play with me while I'm showering, and bites something...bites something off? Nah, I'm overreacting. He already bit me, and I don't think he will again. I'll put him in the bathroom sink, and I'll take a shower. Jaws'll be cool. _I thought as we walked into the bathroom.

"You'll be cool...right?" I said as I picked Jaws up and placed him in a sink full of water.

As soon as Jaws was in the sink, he started splashing around. It looked like he really loved it. His blue scaly skin looked more vibrant than it did earlier! _Perfect! I'll go shower while he's having a great time in the sink!_

After I got out of the shower, Jaws was slurping up the last bit of water in the sink. _I guess water Pokémon are __**really**__ thirsty!_ I walked over to the sink with a towel covering myself, – I can't be too careful with a biting Pokémon! - and turned on the faucet for Jaws. I left the sink on while I went into the other room and got dressed.

I walked back into the bathroom after I was ready to meet the new day, and I found Jaws had his mouth underneath the faucet chugging the water. _I wonder if he stores water. Maybe he can shoot water or something?_ I turned off the sink, and toweled off Jaws with the inn's towel. I dried him off for no reason; to my astonishment I realized that totodiles are never really wet, but only moist. Jaws scales were moist from the sink water, and stayed moist even after my attempt in toweling him. I set Jaws back on the ground after my revelation.

I got all ready and packed up in a matter of minutes. _We should get going. Where to, I have no clue._

"Let's hit the road, Jaws!" I called to my companion.

Jaws hopped up on my shoulder as I exited the room. _He seems really excited to leave this place. Well...can't lie; I am too! _ We made our way back to the old clerk downstairs, and told him thanks and bye.

I walked on the sidewalk of Cherrygrove City, thinking of what I'm going to do next. My mind was going a hundred miles per hour.

"Hey!"

_I should probably make my way to the next gym. I wonder where that is._

"Hey, kid!"

_I also need to get some more pokeballs. Where do they sell those?_

All of a sudden, a middle-aged man stepped right in front of me, shouting; "Hey kid! Can you hear me? Are you deaf? I've been trying to talk to you for a while now."

"Oh sorry. I was just thinking, I didn't hear you."

"You're telling me! You looked like you were off in another world. Anyways, I was only going to ask if you were from around here – I haven't seen you in Cherrygrove before," he said with a welcoming smile. _Whoa. This guy looks so cool. He's got long, white hair in a ponytail, and a sweet scar from his right eye to his chin. He was wearing a nice white button-down shirt and slacks – classy old man. I bet he's a trainer. Or was one. _

"Uh, yeah. I'm new here, I guess. I came from New Bark Town, south of here, yesterday," I replied, a little taken back. _Do I really look like I'm new here?_

"I knew it. I was thinking to myself when I saw you as I was walkin' to the doughnut shop 'That kid must be a trainer passing through!' Well, since you're new here would you like me to give you a tour around the city? I'm Hugh, Hugh Chanp." he said winking at me with his un-scared left eye.

"Sure, that sounds good I guess. I'm Blue Slade, and like I said I'm from New Bark. How did you know I'm a trainer?" I questioned, getting more uncomfortable. _What's up with this guy?_

"Sure, sure. That's one helluva walk for a youngster! And that's easy! I spotted the little totodile on your shoulder! That's a dead give away!" he replied, chuckling slightly.

"The walk over here was pretty bad actually. I got chased by a pack of savage rattatas!" I said innately increasing in volume and getting slightly agitated from thinking about rattatas..

"Ha! You kill me, kid! Rattatas are one of the weakest Pokémon around!" he cried out, now hunched over in laughter. _Okay. This guy is getting on my nerves now._

"It's not funny! I thought Jaws and I were goners!" I shouted.

"Ah. Jaws is your totodile?" he said ending his laughter. He bent down slightly to pet Jaws. _Ugh. I should just walk away._

"I like his sunglasses. Tell ya what, Blue. I can tell you're new to the whole battling thing, so I'll show you a few pointers after I show you around. How does that sound?" the man asked, polite as could be.

"I knew it! You're a trainer aren't you? How did you get **that** scar?" I replied excitedly.

"I'm Hugh Chanp. That name doesn't ring any bells, kid-o?" he asked, frowning slightly.

"Nope! Is it supposed to?"

"I would hope so! I'm the twelfth Pokémon League Champion. My battles were on T.V.! I can't believe you don't know who I am!" he said looking disappointed.

"Nah. That was probably years before I was born. I'm only thirteen years old. But that's still pretty cool, Hughie!"

"...Hughie?" replied my befuddled acquaintance.

"Yeah! You seem too goofy to be a plain old Hugh." I replied with what I hoped was a silly, disarming smile.

"Ha! You're hilarious, kid! Let's get a move on!" he said patting me on the shoulder.

Hughie and I walked around the city for a good thirty minutes or so. He showed me some impressive-looking buildings, flower nurseries, and some other stuff. _This place really isn't much bigger than New Bark. What makes it a city rather than a town? I bet it's the cars and business buildings. We don't really have much of those._ _Man, this is boring. I want to learn battling stuff! I don't care about flowers – yuck!_

Eventually we hit up the suburban areas of Cherrygrove City, and Hughie showed me where he lived. It was a simple yet nice house. Based on the little I knew about Hughie, I could even tell that he puts a lot of work into making it look good. He invited me inside for an early lunch, and I happily accepted. _Can't beat free food!_

After that he told me he was going to take me to a place called a Pokémon Center. He was telling me how nurses work there that specialize in healing trainer's Pokémon, and for free, too! He also told me that all Pokémon Centers, no matter where you are, are distinguishable by their red-brick roofs. As we walked on, I instantly picked out which building it was.

We walked inside and it reminded me of the hospital I went to in New Bark when I broke my arm. It was very clean looking, and very cold. We walked over to the pretty nurse at the front desk – There wasn't much else we could do; it was a pretty small place.

"Hello! Welcome to the Cherrygrove City Pokémon Center. I'm Nurse Bliss, what can I do for you today?" she said in a sweet voice. She looked like she was probably in her twenties. She had shiny, brown hair and a very big smile plastered on her face.

"Yeah, this kid here, Blue, has a little totodile-" began Hughie.

"His name is Jaws! And he got attacked by wild rattatas yesterday!" I said interrupting Hughie. I lifted up Jaws and placed him on the nurse's counter. I showed her Jaws' wounds.

"Ah. I think he's going to be just fine, sweetie. He has a couple of bite-marks and scratches on his little blue tummy. We can fix that real easy," she informed me, scratching underneath my Pokémon's jaw as she did.

"If you would please return him to his pokeball; I can heal him in ten minutes or so." Nurse Bliss said returning her gaze upon me.

"Wow, really? How do you fix him up so fast?" I replied a little shocked.

"We use a machine in the back called P.H.D. It stands for Pokémon Healing Device. It works somewhat like an egg incubator. We place the trainer's pokeball inside the machine, then we calibrate it to heal your Pokémon's needs, and it does so. The speed of the healing process depends on the Pokémon's injury. In your case, Jaws doesn't have much damage, so it won't take too long. However, in serious cases we don't can't use the P.H.D. to heal the Pokémon, and will have to perform surgery," said the nurse in a very serious tone.

"Whoa." I replied, dumbfounded. _I totally didn't know this side to Pokémon. Maybe my dad did research towards this kind of stuff._

I turned to Hughie and told him to be quiet. For some reason, he was laughing almost every time I asked a question.

"Thanks for everything ma'am. Please excuse my little friend's rudeness. He had a rough day yesterday," he said, laughing once more.

"My pleasure Champ! I'll see you shortly, Blue," Nurse Bliss told me, taking Jaws' pokeball to the back room.

"Champ? What's up with that?" I asked Hughie.

"Did you forget already? I told you I'm the twelfth Pokemon League Champion right?" he said winking at me. _Man, this guy is a weird-o._

"Oh yeah!" _I really did forget. It's not my fault he's boring!_

"I almost forgot! Come over here. I need to show you something," he motioned me over, and led me to a computer.

"This is called a P.C, Pokémon computer. It is used for trainers to store Pokémon that they aren't using currently. You can only have six on you at a time, ya know. You can also send and check emails on it," said Hughie. The P.C. was a blue machine about four feet off the ground. It had a large screen that read "TRAINER I.D. INPUT:"

"That sounds useful. I really need to email my mom."

"Do you know your Trainer I.D.?"

"Hmm..nope! I forgot it!" I said getting worried.

"Blue, you know that it's in your pokedex...you have a pokedex right?" replied Hughie.

"Yeah! I have one of those!" I looked through my backpack, and found the red device. I opened it up, and like Hughie said it contained my I.D.

"That's a relief!" I said typing the number on the P.C.'s touch screen.

I wrote my mom a quick email letting her know where I am and what happened. I didn't want to write anything too personal because Hughie was looking right over my shoulder the entire time.

"All done! Now where?" I said turning around, eager for pokemon-battle lessons.

"I'll show you where the Poke Mart is!" replied my new acquaintance, guiding me out the door.

We walked outside, and he told me that all Poke Marts like Poke Centers are the same where ever you go. They will always be buildings with blue roofs. He said it was a place where trainers can buy supplies. The blue roofed building was next to the Pokémon Center. We went inside and bought a few things. I purchased five pokeballs and a special belt that holds pokeballs on it – Hughie told me trainers use them to get quick access to their Pokémon. The grand total was about three hundred and fifty dollars. _I can't be spending like this! I'll be running out of cash in no time!_

We exited the Poke Mart, and headed back to the Poke Center to pick up Jaws. When we got inside the nurse was waiting anxiously for us.

"Here's your totodile, Blue. The recovery went smoothly," Nurse Bliss said, handing me back Jaws' pokeball. I took the pokeball and instinctively released Jaws. I picked him up and examined him. _She did a great job! There's no scars or anything! And his shades are still on!_

"Wow! All his scratches and stuff are gone! That's so cool! Thanks a bunch!" I said with glee.

"You're quite welcome, young man. Best of luck to you!" the nurse replied laughing sweetly.

As we were walking out of the Poke Center, I asked Hughie if he was still up for teaching me how to battle.

"Sure, kid. But first I wanna show you something important with your pokedex."

"Sure, Champ," I said, handing it over.

"Ah, okay. So you can use this thingmajig to tell you what kind of attacks it can use in battle. However, your pokemon may not be able to use all of them right away. They will learn them as they grow, and fight in battle. It's good to have a general idea what to expect."

"That is so cool," I replied, with not a hint of sarcasm. I scanned my pokedex for totodile. I scrolled down his page and saw his move set. _There are some pretty cool-sounding ones, like, Hydro Pump!_

"Hmm. I bet he knows several of these attacks already. Now you can call out these attacks so he can execute them in combat. This is important. If you don't tell Jaws anything chances are he won't do anything; unless, he becomes well trained. Let's walk to Route 29 and practice against some wild pokemon." said the champion wagging his finger in the air.

We walked for a little while; it didn't take too long to reach Route 29. We soon spotted some wild rattatas roaming through the fields.

"How 'bout we practice on something you're familiar with?" Hughie said pointing to a lone rattata near a bush.

"If you think Jaws can handle it." I replied, uneasy.

"He sure will with my guidance. Now start off by telling Jaws to attack that rattata." he said with assuring confidence.

"Go Jaws! Attack that rattata!" I yelled. Jaws hopped off my shoulder, and ran off to the bushes where the fierce little rat still was.

"Now tell Jaws to use the 'Water Gun' attack," Hughie whispered in my ear.

"Jaws! Use water gun!" I ordered.

Jaws then opened his mouth and a surge of water came gushing out aimed at his opponent. The rattata was caught off guard, and was pushed back into the bushes from the water attack. _I like that! Water gun is the coolest!_

"Great, Jaws! Now scratch!" I commanded once more. Instinct came over me. _I remember Jaws using his claws to scratch in his last run-in with that rattata yesterday._

"Stupendous, Blue! You're a natural!" cheered Hughie to the right of me.

Jaws rushed over to the wild Pokémon, now lying on its back, and started scratching it mercilessly. Somehow with whatever energy the rattata had it knocked Jaws off and tackled him on the ground. The purple rat was now on top of Jaws biting hischest._ I will not let this happen again!_

"Jaws! Use water gun!"

Jaws looked down at his opponent biting his torso and unleashed another stream of water. This time the rattata was lifted off the grassy ground and flew into a nearby tree. It was slumped over on the ground after the attack.

"You knocked it out! Great job, kid!" shouted Hughie with excitement.

I ran to Jaws who was sort of near the bushes still.

"Great job, Jaws! You really showed that rattata who's the boss!" I said picking up Jaws.

"Eeep!" screeched Jaws in joy.

After celebrating, I put him back on the ground. I noticed he had hardly any damage on him.

"You did great, kid! You didn't even need my help. I haven't seen anyone pick up battling as quickly as you. I think you'll do great against the gym leaders!" Hughie said patting me on the back.

"Thanks, Champ! I really couldn't have done it without ya! But I won't lie, most of it was all me and Jaws!" I said laughing.

"I think I'm going to head back in town. You think you're gonna train some more?" he said looking a little worn-out.

"Yeah, definitely. Thanks again for everything."

"My pleasure, Blue. Well, it looks like the sun will be setting in a couple of hours. You are more than welcome to join me at my house when you're done here."

"Cool. I think I will later. I'm gonna spend some more time out here training. Maybe even catch a Pokémon." I said getting wired.

"If you plan on catching a pokemon there's something you must know. You will catch a pokemon easier if it is hurt or unconscious; they will have a harder time struggling out of the pokeball. If you try to catch a pokemon that isn't hurt or anything, chances are it'll break free from a pokeball. Keep that in mind, Blue" he said rubbing his chin.

"Oh! I'm glad you told me! I don't want to waste my pokeballs!" I replied with slight embarrassment and my arm raised, above my head.

"I like your attitude kid. But I wouldn't stay out here too late. You never know what lurks out in the wilderness out here late at night." Hughie said waving me good-bye.

"Alright. I'll see you later," I replied watching him take the path back to Cherrygrove City.

_With Jaws by my side we are unstoppable! _We kicked, like, five more rattata butts after Hughie left for home. And neither one of us were getting tired; we were in the freaking zone. Only thing was, we were getting tired of taking on rattatas. They weren't much of a challenge anymore.

We started looking for different Pokémon, but all we found were weak creepy-crawlers called caterpies and weedles. One was green and the latter was yellow with a stinger on its head. Jaws took on the green caterpie and knocked it out with one scratch attack. Pathetic.

Then, we hit the jackpot. The funny thing is that I didn't even spot it. I was looking around on the ground-level for Pokémon, and then I heard Jaws growling. I looked at Jaws and noticed he was looking up, up in the trees. I saw a little brown, furry creature with a long tail directly above us up in a tree. I took out my pokedex and scanned the unknown creature.

"MANKEY, PIG MONKEY POKEMON. IT IS EXTREMELY ILL-TEMPERED. GROUPS OF THEM WILL ATTACK ANY HANDY TARGET FOR NO REASON," spoke my monotonous gadget. I read that it was fighting type Pokémon and several inches shorter than Jaws. _I don't like the sound of getting attacked by a group of them._

"Okay, Jaws let's take this mankey out before we get attacked by a group of 'em!" I ordered.

Jaws nodded, understanding me.

"Water gun, now!" I shouted.

Jaws took a moment to aim the water attack at his target – It was a good six feet above us! Jaws let out a blast of water right at his target. The wild monkey Pokémon dodged the attack, and jumped down to our level from the branch.

I finally got a got a good look at it; the tree hopper was a brown furry creature with a pink snout and angry eyes. _I think Jaws and I successfully ticked it off!_ It howled at us with intense rage. It pounded its fists on its chest. Despite its smaller size, its ferocity intimidated both of us. _I hope we can win this…_

"Let him have it Jaws! Scratch!" I shouted.

Jaws dashed towards his enemy with his right claw raised in the air primed for the attack. When Jaws met his enemy he came down fast, but the mankey dodged his attack by jumping over him. The mankey delivered a hit on the back of Jaws as he leaped over him. _This little monkey is definitely faster than I expected. But maybe we can outsmart it._

The mankey was growing more and more outraged as the battled continued. It would make wild swings at Jaws, and Jaws was having an easier time ducking or side-stepping away from the monster's attacks. Yet it was still landing more hits on Jaws than he was hitting the mankey. Jaws used a water gun attack, and caused the wild ape to jump up onto a overhanging tree. _It's getting sloppier, but I don't know how much longer Jaws can last. I've got to think of something quick! This pokemon is fierce!_

"Hang in there Jaws! I got a plan! Stay put right now, and when I say 'water gun' you jump up and blast the mankey!" I commanded.

Jaws listened to me well. He remained still while the rampaging mankey jumped down the tree and sped closer to Jaws. When the creature was a mere foot away, it made a huge leap with his leg outstretched, primed for a mighty kick.

"Water gun!" I yelled fast.

Jaws performed the water gun attack, and it was a direct hit, and it propelled Jaws further up in the air. The attack definitely phased the critter, but was more furious than ever. It got back on its feet, and made a jump towards the now aerial Jaws. Jaws let out another water attack at his nearing opponent. The wild mankey was managing somehow to fight through the current of the water gun attack, and was inching dangerously close to Jaws.

My jaw dropped waiting for the wild Pokémon to reach Jaws and severely hurt him. _I don't know what to do! How can it take blast after blast of water gun attack? And how in the world is it fighting the current? This thing is too strong!_

The wild Pokémon successfully reached Jaws, and was seconds away from hurting him. _That thing is so strong! What do I do now? _Just as I began to prematurely wince from seeing Jaws get really hurt, the unthinkable happened. Jaws bit the mankey's hand! He stopped shooting water, and realized that the angry little pig-monkey was about to punch his lights out. So Jaws bit the oncoming fist – which I'm sure did wonders to teeth! I was so proud of him. Jaws then still a couple feet off the ground started spinning in a terribly fast circle. Before I knew it the mankey came hurdling towards me. _Wow! Jaws is a beast! I can't believe that was only a matter of seconds; it felt like an hour! I should probably jump out of the way!_

I jumped out of the way, and it hit the ground hard like a crashing meteor, destroying the grassy ground. Instinctively, I grabbed a pokeball off my belt, and threw it at the knocked out Pokémon. A red light shot out of the striped ball. The mankey was zapped inside. The ball was moving a little bit, and then it stopped. I walked over and picked it up. I thrust my newly captured Pokémon's ball into the air.

"We did it! We caught the mankey!" I screamed in complete happiness.

_I never thought I'd be doing this; going around in the wilderness, fighting wild Pokémon, almost dying, and catching them! Catching them is the best! _I turned around expecting to see an exhausted Jaws panting, but he was looking rather chipper. _I guess he's just as excited as me!_ He was still wearing the shades, too! _How did he make sure to keep those on?_ He did look a little beat up despite his excitement; the front of his mouth looked a little swollen, and he had plenty of newly forming bruises all over his body. It even looked like he lost a couple of teeth from the last punch! I ran over to where he was to celebrate our victory.

"You okay, Jaws?" I asked rubbing his head.

He made the classic dumb, toothy smile at me that I've seen a couple times now.

"You really did great, Jaws! I'm super impressed with the whole biting and spinning move. That was awesome! Let's walk back to Hughie's; it's getting dark." I said putting him back up on his rightful place, on my shoulder.

Jaws and I were making great time; there was still a little light out. I could almost see the city lights until I heard something. _I know that sound! It sounds like a girl shouting! I can't make out what she's saying, but it probably isn't good. I almost don't want to check it out because we were so close to sleeping in a bed, but I ought to. I don't want to hear about another dead body that I could have prevented. _The sound was in the same direction as the city, just more to the right.

"Let's check it out, Jaws." I said trying to calm myself._ I hope it isn't a pack of mankeys!_

I took Jaws off my shoulder, and let him lead the way. _He'll probably have an easier time finding whoever's shouting by tracking her down with his snout. I bet he can smell things really good; it's so big! _

Just moments later, we found the source of the shouting. It was a girl about my age, and she was sitting underneath a tree bawling her eyes out. She had strawberry-blonde hair, and was wearing a blue plaid shirt with blue-jeans and boots. She had a brown cowboy hat sitting upon her hair. _I like her hat. That's kinda cool._

"Hey. Are you okay? I heard you on my way back to-"

"No! I've. Been. Chased. By. A pack of mankeys all afternoon!" the girl panted out. "I dunno what I did! They just started chasin' me, and my Eevee all a sudden. They just stopped a little while ago, and now I'm lost" the girl said with a high-pitched voice and sobbing still.

"Wow, how weird. I caught myself a mankey not too long ago. And what's an 'Eevee'?" I said.

"You caught one? How? Those things are crazy!" she shouted in return. "And Eevee is my Pokémon. She's in her pokeball right now; she's really beat up," she finished sadly.

"Believe me, I know. I didn't think we were going to win that one. Anyways, I'm going back to Cherrygrove City. Do you want to come with?" I inquired, offering my hand to pick her up.

"Yeah, that'd be great. I'm so scared and lost. I'm Quimbly Weatherton. What's your name?" she asked back, grabbing my hand with one hand and wiping her red eyes with the other.

"I'm Blue Slade. Nice to meet you!" I replied.

Night had fallen during our introductions. _Dangit! _ Then I heard familiar roars and screeches.

"Raaaaaaaar!"

"Eeek!"

"Murrrrrr!"

Shouted three wild mankeys from treetops. _I can't tell where they are. This is not good. We need to get out of here quick!_

"The mankeys are back, Blue! Let's run!" Quimbly squealed.

"Nah, I think I can handle this. Jaws here has handled the last wild mankey pretty well." I said.

_ I changed my mind. Jaws is familiar with their attacks, and I think we can get out of this one okay. _Then one of the mankeys jumped down , and sucker punched Jaws in the gut. Jaws was holding his stomach, and was moaning in pain. He fell over shortly after. _We're done._

"No! Jaws!" I yelled in shock.

As I was returning Jaws back to his pokeball, a Pokémon appeared out of nowhere and walked in front of us. It was red and white, and about six feet tall. It had long white feathers on its back in a v-shaped kind of formation. It looked like certain parts of were on fire; its wrists and feet were ablaze. It stopped walking, and had its back facing us. _Is this Pokémon protecting us?_

Then the rest of the pack of wild mankeys jumped out of the shadows. The flame Pokémon kicked and punched the wild mankeys as they attempted to attack it. The red Pokémon was incredibly quick with its attacks. As the mankeys flew back from the blows they were engulfed in flame. _So cool._

"Run! Get out of here!" shouted a woman from the shadows.

Quimbly and I hightailed it out of there.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: And We Were Meant For Battle**

"Yes, we're here, Kimberly. We are in Cherrygrove City." I said slightly annoyed. We stopped at a hill a little out of the city; it had a great view of the city. _I can't believe it's only been thirty minutes since our run in with the tall flaming pokemon and the pack of mankeys! I'm glad we found the path; I don't think we would've made it without it. I'm pooped. I wish this cowgirl would stop yapping._

"Ahem, it's Q-u-i-m-b-l-y." she spelled out. I turned around to see her all agitated. She forgot her anger when she saw the city lights. She looked happy, at ease even.

"Gee, Blue. I have never seen nothin' like this! Look at the lights – A-and how big it is!" she said gazing upon the city. Cherrygrove loomed on the horizon from the hill we were standing on.

_She's right! I've never seen anything like that before. That's pretty cool. _I let out a sigh and stretched my arms up into the air. _It's been a long day. We should probably get going; if I stare at the lights anymore I might pass out. _

"Do you know what happened back there?" I asked suddenly, killing the mood. _Maybe this'll get her moving again._

"Nah. It sure was scary, though! I'm glad someone protected us from those horrible mankeys! I thought we'd surely be killed!" she said still staring at the city lights.

"Yeah, that was crazy. I want to know who saved our butts, y'know? I bet they're a great trainer or even a champion!" I said excitedly. _I bet our rescuer was a really pretty girl who knew a thing or too about Pokémon. Chances are she already beat the Pokémon League and models during her free time. _

"Anyway, Quimbly, I think we should make our way into the town. Standing out here isn't getting us any closer to a bed. We should stop by the Poke Center; I don't know about you, but my Pokémon are hurt pretty bad," I said coldly.

"Poke Center? What's that?" she asked, facing me.

"A Poke Center is a…hospital for Pokémon. It's really handy. You show up, hand the nurse your pokeballs, and she'll heal them up super fast. And it's free!" I answered.

"Well, all I got is my Eevee, and she did get hit a lot by those gosh-darn Mankeys! I bet she's over-due for some Poke-Center-healin'!" Quimbly declared.

As we left our hilly entrance, we talked about what led us to becoming Pokémon trainers. I didn't say too much except becoming a trainer has always been a dream of mine, and now I'm living it.

"That's so nice! I'm kinda doin' this because my whole family is trainers. My brothers are out here in Johto somewhere with their own Pokémon, too. You can spot them on account of their red hair – like mine! But I guess I was forced into it..." she said trailing off.

"Oh... looks like we're here." I said changing the subject. _I don't really know what to say. I've never been too good at helping with other people's problems. Better I say nothing, I guess._

Quimbly and I walked inside the Poke Center. It looked even less busy at night. We approached the nurse I met earlier.

"Hiya nurse! I got back from training today, and I'm proud to say that I've come back with two injured Pokémon!" I said greeting the nurse and smiling wildly. I then placed my two pokeballs on the counter in front of her.

"Oh my! That's great news, Blue! I'm glad to hear you caught a Pokémon!" she replied sweetly.

"Yeah it wasn't that big of a deal, I guess. Jaws and I only had the battle of our lives capturing a crazed wild mankey," I said nonchalantly. _Man, am I cool._

"Uh-huh. That sure sounds like quite the adventure. And who is this pretty girl with you?" she said, disregarding my awesomeness.

"Oh, that's just Quimbly. I rescued her from a **pack** of wild mankeys." I said puffing out my chest with pride.

"No, don't silly Blue. Blue found me, and then we got attacked by a wild pack of mankeys. Luckily, someone found us and fought the scary monkeys off while we ran away," Quimbly explained in an astonishingly calm voice.

I sighed deeply. _Ugh! What a buzz-kill!_ "Yeah, I guess she's right. But it was still an awesome get-away!" I lied.

"I'm sure it was, Blue. Now Quimbly, do you have any pokemon that need healing?" the nurse asked politely, disregarding me once more.

"I sure do Miss...?" Quimbly asked.

"Oh, my name is Bliss. You can call me Nurse Bliss." she answered. _That's her name! I thought it was Nurse Liz!_

"Well, hi Nurse Bliss. I have my Eevee, and he's hurt pretty bad. He got ganged up on by those mankeys, and they laid down a whooping on him!" she said, getting upset.

Quimbly handed Nurse Bliss her lone pokeball. Nurse Bliss used this cool wand-like device that had two parts sticking out the top – it was y shaped; she held one pokeball one by one in between the two arching parts. A blue laser shot from one tip to the other going through the pokeball.

"Whoa! What the heck are you doing?" I roared.

"Oh, sorry! This device is called Pokémon Damage Surveyor or P.D.S for short. I didn't know how hurt your Pokémon were, and so I use this to determine their treatment without releasing them from their pokeball. Sorry for startling you!" she revealed.

"Oh! That seems handy. Sorry for over-reacting, Nurse Bliss. I thought you were frying my Pokémon in their pokeballs!" I responded defending my actions.

"Don't worry about it. I understand. It looks like Quimbly's Eevee is the most damaged. She was close to breaking one of her legs! You're smart to have returned her; otherwise we might've had to perform surgery. Your newly caught mankey's right wrist is messed up pretty bad. But don't worry, we can fix that up easy. Your Jaws looks a bit bruised up, but nothing serious. He lost some teeth somehow, but don't worry we can perform rapid-recovery. He'll have a new set of teeth by the morning." Nurse Bliss informed us.

"Thanks, Nurse Bliss!" said Quimbly.

"Is that gonna hurt? The teeth thing I mean," I asked apprehensively.

"It shouldn't be too bad, Blue. After we heal him in the P.H.D., we'll release Jaws from his poke ball and perform minor surgery. We'll sedate him, so it's like he won't even feel it. Don't worry!" she responded with a smile.

"That's a relief!" I exclaimed.

"Both of you come back by tomorrow morning and they should all be ready to go!" said Nurse Bliss.

"Thanks!" we said in unison.

As we were walking out of the Poke Center I remembered that old-man Hughie said I could stay at his place for the night. _I'm sure Quimbly could too._

"Hey, Quimbly," I said, stopping outside of the Poke Center.

"Yes, Blue?" asked Quimbly stopping in front of me.

"I just wanted to let you know that I'm gonna stay at this old man named Hughie's house for the night. He's really nice, but kinda weird. He laughs a lot. Anyways, I think if you want to you could spend the night there, too. I mean unless you already have somewhere to sleep..." I said slightly stumbling over my last statement. _That's weird. I never stumble._

"Really? You think so, Blue?" Quimbly questioned in excitement.

"Oh yeah! He's totally nice! He taught me how to battle earlier!" I answered, equaling her excitement.

"Oh, boy! I'm glad you said somethin'! I was worried I was gonna have to sleep on my backpack out on the streets or somethin'!"

"Yeah, yeah, no prob." _She makes me feel uncomfortable for some reason._

We walked around for twenty minutes or so. I forgot exactly where he lived, but I knew it wasn't too far from the Poke Center. Quimbly kept giggling when I told her it's just one more left. _I hate how Quimbly can already tell that I'm forgetful. I've only been here once anyways!_ I knocked on Hughie's door several times. _Maybe he's in a deep sleep! _We waited a few minutes, and just as I was about to knock once more Hughie opened up the door.

"Hey Champ! Is it cool for us to sleep here?" I said, greeting our hopefully soon-to-be host.

"Huh? Yeah, certainly! Who is this young lady with you?" he said, directing the question to me but looking at Quimbly.

"Hi, Mr. Champ! My name is Quimbly Weatherton. I sure hope I'm not imposing on you!" Quimbly quickly answered. _I could've said that._

"No worries. Any friend of the kid is a friend of mine!" replied Hughie. _I'm going to remember that. That should be on a greeting card._

"Well, we're more acquaintances..." Quimbly trailed off shifting her eyes. _What the heck!_

"Yeah, whatever Quimbly. Well, are me and my acquaintance still good for staying over?" I said smirking.

"Yes, of course! Come on in!" Hughie said opening the door open for us to walk in.

The inside of Hughie's place was what I expected for an old bachelor. It was simple, yet nice. Not a whole lot of decorations unlike my house; just furniture and common household stuff.

Hughie showed us into the kitchen area, and sat us down at his small table. We had some more small talk; more Quimbly than me. I was too eager to share my story of how I captured my newest powerful addition to my team.

"Yes sir, I'm from a ranch that's many miles off of Route 29. Ever heard of-"

"Yeah, so there I was deep into the forrest-y part of Route 29. Jaws and I were on a roll; we took down, like, five rattatas up to this point. We were getting bored, and then, all of a sudden, we heard something moving above us. Jaws spotted the mankey, and I ordered him to unleash a water gun attack on him. The mankey dodged it and then I had the biggest battle of my life. The mankey was dodging Jaws' attacks like a ninja! So I decided to make Jaws stay put, and jump in the air and shoot water when the mankey attacks him. He did so, and guess what! It didn't phase the mankey at all! Jaws almost got punched in the face! Instead he bit the mankey's oncoming fist, and threw him into the ground! It was so cool!" I yelled out, ending with a huge smile. _It's rewarding to share my adventures with others. It makes me seem so awesome. _For some strange reason, Quimbly was glaring at me during my entire story.

"Good God, boy! That sounds like a fantastic battle! I wish I stuck around to see it!" said Hughie.

"Anyways, sir, I was going to tell you how I met Blue." continued Quimbly. _What's her deal? She sounds super grumpy!_

"Oh, yeah. Please continue!"

"Blue found me underneath a huge tree. At this point I had already been attacked by a pack of Mankeys, and they lost me. Blue offered to show me where Cherrygrove City is – And it sure is a pretty city! I love the lights! Just as we were about to leave, the mankeys returned with a vengeance! Blue sent out his totodile, and it got punched off guard! I thought we'd surely be doomed, but then some tall – like six foot tall – red Pokémon with flaming wrists and ankles protected us! Someone shouted for us to run, and we left as fast as we could."

"Jaws could've protected us!" I defended.

"Do you have any idea who could've saved us Mr. Champ?" asked Quimbly. _Ack! I hate being ignored!_

"Hmm. I think it might've been a Ranger." responded Hughie.

"What's that?" I asked.

"A Ranger is a qualified trainer that's sole purpose is to help people with aid from their Pokémon. It's kind of like the police," answered Hughie.

"Oh! I'm glad we had a Ranger to protect us!" exclaimed Quimbly.

"Yeah! But what Pokémon was that, Hughie? It was so powerful!" I questioned.

"It sounds like it be a Blaziken. It's a fully evolved fighting-fire hybrid Pokémon from Hoenn. Blazikens are very strong Pokémon, and are capable of engulfing their opponents in fire after kicking or punching them," said Hughie.

"Ahhhh! That is so cool! Our Ranger-rescuer-person's coolness is off the charts!" I shouted with glee. Hughie cringed from my loudness. _I have no control on my volume! Ha!_

"And on that note, I am going to hit the sack. I have a guest-room that someone can sleep in. It's down that hall to the right." he said pointing to the hall in the living room.

"The other person can sleep on the couch. Oh, and feel free to use the bathroom across from the guest-room. Goodnight, kid-os!" continued Hughie. We thanked him for everything, and then he walked down the hallway he spoke of. We were left by ourselves.

"Hey Quimbly. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"What?"

"I'm freaking starved! Let's find some food!"

"I don't know..."

_Whatever, I'm gonna eat._ I looked in Hughie's refrigerator for some leftovers. There wasn't a whole lot in there: prune juice, a half-gallon of milk, fruit, and a container with something in it. I grabbed the plastic container and opened it. Inside was some chili-like substance, and it smelt a little weird. _What the hay! I'm too hungry to care! _I closed the container, and placed it inside Hughie's black microwave. I heated up the substance for a minute or so, and then I chowed down. _Hmm. It tastes kind of like chicken. How weird!_

"Y'know, it's not half-bad!" I said with my mouth stuffed. Quimbly stared at me looking a little sad. _I'm so hungry I that it doesn't even matter what I'm eating! What would Mom think?_ After I realized I was full of mystery food, I offered my leftovers to my 'acquaintance'.

"I'm done, Quimbly. You can have it. I'm gonna go hop in the shower, and go to bed. See ya in the morning!" I said smiling.

"Oh...Thanks." she replied looking a little disappointed.

After I took a nice, hot shower, I jumped into the guestroom's bed. It wasn't all that comfy, but it was better than the inn I stayed in the night before. _Should I see if Quimbly's okay? Nah, she'll be fine._

* * *

I awoke to loud knocking.

"You up?" spoke our host through the door.

"I am now." I said opening the door.

"Blue? Heh. Crap, I thought you'd be a nice gentleman, and give the bed to the girl!" said Hughie shaking his head.

"Crap?"

"What? You don't know what crap means?"

"Not a clue."

"Crap literally means poop. People say it when something bad happens or are in disbelief."

"Ohhh! I like the sound of that!" I said, chuckling.

"You really got a lot to learn, kid." he said in exasperation, putting his hand on his forehead and shaking it once more.

We walked into the living room, and Quimbly was still asleep on the ugly lime-green couch. _Ha! She has really girly PJ's!_ Hughie made me go wake her up for whatever reason. I nudged her a little on her shoulder.

"No, Ma. I don't wanna go!" she muttered with her eyes still closed.

"Ma?" I said laughing.

"Blue! Uh, sorry! I thought I was still home!" she said scratching her head.

"Crap, Quimbly! Get a grip!" I responded, laughing. _I am hilarious._

"Blue! That's a bad word! You shouldn't say it!" she exclaimed, now sitting up.

"Nice! Even better!" I said rubbing my hands together maniacally.

"Oh you kids!" chimed in Hughie, laughing as well. "Hey, are y'all hungry? I'll fix up some breakfast!"

Quimbly and I sat down at the kitchen table once again, while Hughie manned the skillet, and soon fed us some slightly burnt bacon and eggs. We talked a little while we ate.

"So what's the next place I ought to go, Hughie?" I asked with a full mouth.

"You should go to Violet City next. There's a gym there, and you can earn your first gym badge. There's also a huge tower called Sprout Tower; you might be able to pick up a ghost Pokémon if you wanted. Ghost Pokémon are somewhat rare compared to what you'll find on Route 30 and Route 31," said Hughie.

"Ghosts? Cool!" I yelped.

"Are they scary?" asked Quimbly apprehensively.

"I won't lie, Quimbly; the ghost Pokémon will try to scare you off. But if you manage to stick through their frights, and catch one it shouldn't be trying to scare you anymore."

"Scary ghost pokemon sound so awesome! I'm definitely going to catch one!" I declared.

"I dunno..." spoke Quimbly softly.

"Haha! Anyways, the trek to Violet City is a long one. You have to travel about thirty miles up North on Route 30, and then 6 or so miles West on Route 31." continued Hughie.

"Crap! That's a much farther trip than my walk from New Bark to Cherrygrove!" I shouted in distress.

"Haha! Sure is, kid. I think it'd be safer if you two traveled together. Have you given much thought about that?" asked Hughie. _Man, I really didn't think about that at all. I kinda figured this would be the end of the line with Quimbly and me, but traveling together might not be a bad idea. It'd give me someone to talk to in the very least, even though she's a total bore…_

"Uh, I don't know. It's really up to you, Quimbly," I responded, looking to my acquaintance.

"I think it's a great idea. I mean, I wouldn't have even gotten here without you, so I think it'll be a smart choice. And besides, I'm not all that great of a battler," she said the last part quickly, looking down at the table right after.

"Don't worry! I'll show you the ropes! But there's a catch. I know you're not too good at battling now, but when you get better I want you to be my practicing partner. The only way I'm gonna be a Champion is if I practice all the time. Deal?" I said eagerly, extending my hand.

"Deal! At least one of us will be great!" she replied.

After Hughie finished chuckling (_he sure did find a lot of things funny)_, he said; "Great! I've got some good news for the newly partnered team! I'm going to lend you my old camping equipment from when I was a trainer!"

"From when you were a trainer? It won't fall apart on us, will it?" I asked.

"No, you ungrateful punk. Be thankful I'm offering!" he replied sternly.

"Right! Thanks Champ! You're super nice!" I replied, trying my best to sound grateful. _I probably should be thankful. Hughie sure has done a lot for me._

"Believe me, you'll need it when you can't make it to a town. You know you can stay at Poke Centers for free, right?" said Hughie.

"No, I sure didn't! You're a well of information!" Quimbly answered, smiling.

"You're welcome, Quimbly." he said, then glaring at me. _Geez. And I thought I was a suck-up._

We then got dressed and packed up after breakfast. As we were about to leave Hughie imparted more information and gifts.

"Blue. Before you two leave I want to give you something. After seeing you battle, and spending some time with you, you remind me of myself when I started out training – completely clueless. Quimbly has a good head on her shoulders, so I'm not too worried about her," He finished handing me this black gauntlet thing. I took it, and stared at it in wonder. _What does this thing do?_

"Put it on your left arm if your right-handed or vice-versa if your left-handed," instructed Hughie. I slipped it onto my left arm, and the metallic thing was rather cold on my skin. It reached from my wrist to my elbow; covering my entire forearm.

"That is my old pokegear. It's a handy device that has a multitude of functions. It'll display a map of whatever Island you are in which has a GPS in it, it also functions as a cell-phone, and has a radio. Press the red button underneath the screen to boot it up," continued Hughie.

I pressed the small, red button, and the black screen turned to white. Then it a small rectangular bar appeared with a blue line inside gradually reaching the other end; it read 'LOADING' above the bar. Then it played a soothing tune, and POKE GEAR 1.02 appeared on the screen. The screen read welcome, and three icons were underneath it. One was a telephone icon, another was a square map-like one, and the other one was a radio icon. I instinctively pressed the map button, and an image of the Johto region appeared. _Touch screen? So cool! _There was a little icon of a boyish-looking head hovering over Cherrygrove City.

I stood in amazement of my new device. I started pressing buttons, and music started blazing through the poke gear's speakers. Hughie walked over and showed me how to do a couple more things with it. _This will do so much for me! I won't ever worry about being lost! And I can call Mom! Too bad I don't remember our home phone number! _

"Oh and I have a couple more going away presents for both of you!" he said turning around looking for something. He walked over to a desk, and started rummaging through it.

"There it is!" Hughie said holding several small hexagon shaped items in his hand. He walked back to us, and explained what they were.

"These little items are called T.M.s. That stands for Technical Machine." he said with his hand open showing us three different colored items.

"These are used to teach a Pokémon an attack that it can't learn on its own. There are different colored ones for each type of attack and whatnot. The dark brown one is an attack called Rock Slide; it is pretty self explanatory. The beige one is called Bulk Up; when used it causes the Pokémon to rapidly increase its muscle mass. And lastly, the white one is called Double Team; when used the Pokémon moves so fast that it looks like there are copies of itself to their opponent. It's great for confusing your opponent. Here take them." he said offering the T.M.s to us. I chose the dark brown one and the beige one because those sounded more powerful. That left Quimbly with the Double Team T.M.

"Thanks, Hughie! I can't wait to try these out!" I said with excitement.

"Thanks, Mr. Hughie," my partner echoed. "But how do we use these?" _I didn't even think about that!_

"Easy! You tap the screen, and it enlarges to the size of a small T.V. It has a scanner that will scan your Pokémon for compatibility with the T.M. If it is compatible, it will show a video on its screen performing the attack. Your Pokémon should pick up the attack quickly after viewing the video. But here's the catch, the batteries for a T.M. have a one time use life. If you want to use a T.M. again you'll need to buy more batteries for it. You can also buy more T.M.s at stores and get them from trainers. On another note, your Pokémon can learn other creature's moves if they watch battles or if they train together. So if you have multiple pokemon, let them out to watch battles every so often," explained Hughie.

"Whoa now! Thanks for the earful!" I said smirking. _That is so much to try out!_

"Yes, thank you very much, Mr. Hughie. I've learned so much from you!" declared Quimbly, hugging our host.

"Haha. My pleasure, kid-os. Best of luck out there! Keep me updated!" Hughie said chuckling. He handed me a small card with his name and phone number on it. _It wouldn't hurt to call him sometime, I guess. He does know a lot about pokemon and battling._ I thought as I put the card in my backpack.

Hughie walked us out of his humble abode and watched us as we walked over to the nearby Poke Center.

"Ya know, I think I'll miss that old fart." I said walking still.

"I know what you mean, Blue. He's weird, but he's so nice, too!" replied Quimbly.

We entered the red bricked building and received our Pokémon back from the kind nurse. And just as quickly, we let them out of their pokeballs. Jaws had his teeth replaced, – the few that were missing – and my Mankey looked healthy. Just as I was about to return my Pokémon to their homes, the mankey went nuts. It started screeching and pounding its chest like a madman at the sight of my other Pokémon. I hastily returned him before he caused anymore ruckus.

"Sorry, Nurse Bliss! I had no clue he'd be upset!" I apologized to the nurse.

"I'm Nurse Glee, her twin sister! Don't worry, mankeys are typically upset pokemon. You should try to be friendly to it!" the identical nurse replied.

"Weird! Thanks, Miss!" I said leaving the pokekmon hospital.

Jaws was ecstatic to see me again, and I was happy to see he was okay. Jaws, Quimbly, and I walked around a little outside the Poke Center. Quimbly released her pokemon. It was a really small four-legged brown creature with a white, puffy mane. It had a bushy, brown tail and pointy ears as well. _I can see Quimbly using this Eevee! It's really girly and cute!_ I took out my pokedex out of my backpack and scanned it.

My pokedex spoke; "EEVEE, EVOLUTION POKEMON. BECAUSE ITS GENETIC MAKEUP IS IRREGULAR, IT QUICKLY CHANGES ITS FORM DUE TO A VARIETY OF CAUSES." _Evolution pokemon? What does that mean?_

"Nice Quimbly! Its description sounds really cool! Are you going to change it?" I said excitedly.

"Yeah, but later I think. At home all my family has different evolutions of Eevees. Its parents are a Flareon and a Vaporeon, which are fire and water-based, respectively," responded Quimbly.

"Oh. What does evolution mean?" I asked in confusion.

"That means a pokemon changes into a more powerful version of itself. Sometimes they change type, get bigger, and other stuff. It's really important to evolve your pokemon because it means they are stronger." explained Quimbly. _I wonder if Jaws'll evolve. I bet it's some huge reptile thing. _

"Hey, do you want to release your mankey? – Is that its name? I have an idea to calm it down." continued Quimbly as I was thinking about evolutions.

"Hmm. I haven't thought about it much. Give me a sec to think of a great name." I replied. _Okay mankey, you're crazy and strong..._

"His name is Berserk!" I shouted.

"Fitting name!" chuckled Quimbly.

"I think you might want to return Jaws while Berserk is out, Blue. It seems like Berserk does not like Jaws at all." suggested Quimbly.

"Good thinking!" I said returning Jaws and letting loose Berserk. When released Berserk didn't seem too crazed or anything; he was looking around, observing his surroundings. I walked up to him, and tried to pet him. Berserk seemed put-off by this, and jumped away from me. He then glared at me. _Youch! His eyes are like daggers!_

"He doesn't seem upset per se, but he clearly doesn't like me!" I said, distressed. _Jaws liked me just fine, why won't he?_

"I bet it's something to do with its pride, Blue. You should try to be nice to him or something. Here give him some of this." Quimbly said walking handing me some brown, pellet-looking stuff.

"That's some poke-feed from my ranch. Try to feed Berserk with it; he might trust you a bit more afterward," said Quimbly as I stared at the poke-feed in my right hand.

"Okay, then. I'll give it a whirl! Here Berserk! I got something for you!" I help my right hand outstretched towards him. Slowly, Berserk approached me, and carefully picked up some feed out of my hand. He sniffed it, and then he put it in his mouth. Immediately he smiled, and went back for more. _I think it's working! _He ate more at a faster pace. Just as he was nearing the end of the feast, I tried to pet him with my left arm. Berserk didn't flinch or anything, and let me pet him! _His fur is pretty soft! Much better than Jaws' icky scales._

"Quimbly, you're a genius!" I said looking over to her as I was still petting my new pokemon.

"Shucks, it was nothing!" replied Quimbly. Her Eevee joined in on the eating, and ate some pellets out of my hand as well. To my surprise Berserk was cool with Eevee, and didn't mind sharing. _Maybe it only hates Jaws. Poor Jaws._

"Picture time!" shouted Quimbly. She pulled out a digital camera out of her backpack, and took a picture of Berserk and Eevee eating out of my hand. I smiled big for the picture and that caused my eyes to squint a little, and I threw up a peace sign with my free-hand.

"Good idea!" I said after the flash.

"Yeah, I plan on taking a lot of pictures, so I can email them to my parents. Y'know, show 'em what I'm up to." she replied. _That's pretty cool of her._

"Would it be cool if I send that picture to my mom, too?" I asked.

"Surely!" she replied with a huge grin.

I stopped petting Berserk, and decided to keep him out so he can get better acclimated to living with me. Like Jaws, he would hop up on me. But unlike Jaws, he would prefer to sit upon my head. He was much smaller and lighter than Jaws, so it wasn't a bother. He seemed to enjoy messing with my hair though. _What a feisty critter!_ _Looks like I got two naughty Pokémon!_

I looked down at my poke-gear and it read 9:00 A.M. "Wow, we got plenty of time to head out, Quim!"

"Quim?"

"Yeah, I just made it up. It's shorter to say," I said smirking.

"Alright... B! Is there anything else we should do in Cherrygrove before we head out to Route 30 you think?"

"Well, maybe we should go to the Poke Mart and pick up a bit more supplies," I suggested.

We walked inside the close blue-roofed building, and greeted the shopkeeper inside. I asked what he'd recommend for first-timers on Route 30. He said I should buy some potions to heal my pokemon because there are no Poke Centers on the trip to Violet City. Quimbly bought a few pokeballs as well. As we left the shop, I noticed my clock read 9:15 A.M. _We are making great time!_

I pressed the map button on my poke gear, and it showed me how where to exit Cherrygrove City. We made our way towards the entrance of Route 30, and got our first glimpse of Route 30. It looked pretty much the same as Route 29 except for two major differences. Route 30 had a small unpaved road that cars were traveling on, and it seemed much bigger. _I bet there are so many pokemon out here!_

Quimbly and I walked for forty minutes on the side of the road. _I think I want some training time; we're far enough from the city. _I asked Quimbly if it'll be alright if I train by myself, and we'd meet up at a road sign at noon. She was agreeable to my plan, and we went our separate ways.

I found a small body of water as I walked to the East of the road – My poke gear had a compass as well! _Perfect opportunity to make my Pokémon like each other! If my mankey goes crazy on Jaws, I can tell Jaws to hide in the water!_ With Berserk still on my head, I reached for Jaws' pokeball on my belt and released him. The blue reptile came out with a burst of energy. He immediately hopped up on my shoulder. Jaws nestled his head against mine. Berserk, in turn, jumped off me and started screeching at Jaws. _Crap! This thing really has anger issues!_

I set Jaws down on the ground to face his former-opponent. "Jaws, I hope you understand this. Remember that Pokémon?" I said pointing at the rampaging mankey. Jaws stopped smiling.

"Yeah, I know you two aren't really friends, but he's a great fighter. Could you try to be nice to Berserk? Please?" I asked, petting him. Jaws snorted.

"I want you to not fight back if he hurts you. If things get too crazy jump in the water over there, okay?" I told Jaws. Jaws nodded slightly.

"Alright, here goes nothing! Go walk over to him, but don't attack Jaws!" I ordered. Jaws jumped off my shoulder onto the ground in front of me.

At first, the little monkey went nuts at the approaching totodile. It was jumping around and yelling at it with rage. _I can handle this._

"Berserk! Calm down. That is Jaws. I know he beat you yesterday, but now you're my Pokémon like him. Don't hurt him." I commanded with confidence.

Berserk calmed down after I spoke. "Good, Berserk!" I walked over to him and pet him.

"Now Jaws come over here," I ordered. Jaws cautiously waddled over. He seemed apprehensive about my orders. As soon as Jaws was arm-length away from Berserk, Berserk turned his back to Jaws.

"It's okay Jaws. Berserk is stubborn, I think." _I guess it might take a while for them to be friends..._

After the truce, the three of us went looking for Pokémon. I didn't find any Pokémon that I hadn't seen on Route 29; it was mostly rattatas and lame centipede types. I let Jaws and Berserk train a bit by fighting a few of them. I got a better feel for Berserk's fighting style; he was more agile and relied on more physical attacks Jaws.

Noon came pretty fast, so we made our way back to the highway sign. I forgot where it was exactly, so it took me a little longer than I expected.

"There you are, Blue! Late much?" joked Quimbly.

"Yeah..funny story – I forgot where this spot was," I said grinning.

"It's okay. Anyways, I got some great news!" responded Quimbly with the most excitement I've ever seen.

"Oh, what?" I said surprised.

"I caught my first Pokémon!" she shouted.

"No way! Where is it?" I said in disbelief. _ I didn't think she'd be capable of catching one!_

"It's a Ledyba." she said releasing her newly captured Pokémon. It was a small Pokémon…but it was still bigger than any of my Pokémon; its appearance was that of a red, eight-legged bug. Its underbelly was sort of beige colored. It was hovering around Quimbly. _It flies? So cool!_

I took out my pokedex to scan it. It said; "LEDYBA, FIVE STAR POKEMON. WHEN WEATHER TURNS COLD, LOTS OF LEDYBA GATHER FROM EVERYWHERE TO CLUSTER AND KEEP EACH OTHER WARM."

"Nice! It flies! I'm not gonna lie, that's pretty cool! Where did you find it? I didn't see any." As I spoke, Berserk and Jaws tried to jump on it. Ledyba was quick enough to evade their attempts to board it.

"I found it high up on a tree! It came down when I started shaking the tree." she answered. _That explains it._

"Looks like they have flying envy!" I said, chuckling at my Pokémon. Quimbly giggled at the sight.

We decided to eat some food before we continued walking. I took out a couple PB&J's, and we devoured them. Quim's Ledyba ate tree sap while we feasted. We decided to cover some more ground before night fell. We continued walking close to the road.

Just as I was considering asking Quim for a practice battle, these two goofy-looking guys were walking toward us. They looked almost identical except one was a bit rounder than the other. They were wearing matching black outfits with a crescent moon on the front of their shirt.

"Stou! I spy trainers! Shall we rob them blind?" the less chubby one asked his partner

"Indeed, Lou!" confirmed the other.

Both of them, then ran up to us armed with their pokeballs. _My first official battle! This should be fun! Alright, sound intimidating; can't be a push-over. _I looked at Quimbly and she looked a little worried.

"Muahahahaaha! Come face me, my victims!" I shouted, laughing maniacally. Quimbly gave me a weird look.

"Is this kid crazy, Lou?" said the fatter one.

"Yeah! I call him!" confirmed the other. _What? No cries of fear? Whatever, let's just fight._

"Quim, you ready for this?" I said looking at her. She nodded in return. _She looks serious!_

"I'll take the less-chubby one, okay?"

"Sure. Let's beat these weirdos." said Quimbly.

The less-chubby guy, apparently named Lou, threw a pokeball close to me. _What's this guy's deal? Is he trying to hurt me?_ It released a rattata, and it tried to bite me. I jumped out of the way of its attack. _No way! Not again!_

"What's your deal?" I shouted at my opponent.

"Nothing, you little shit. I want your money and Pokémon. It's up to you to put up a fight!" he said, smiling evilly. _Whoa! Not cool. Time to lay a smack-down!_

"Berserk! Let's show this fatty who's boss!" I told my mankey as it ran into battle. "And you, Jaws, stay by me. I might need you later." My totodile looked up at me and nodded.

"Rattata, tackle that mankey down!" ordered my opponent. _I can't believe people actually catch those stupid rats. I hate those things!_

"Berserk, dodge! Then scratch!" Berserk dodged the oncoming rattata by jumping over it, and in midair scratched the creature's back. I could see faint red marks down the purple rat's back.

"Rattata, use tail whip!" The rattata turned around to Berserk, and did a low sweeping attack with its tail, causing Berserk to fall over. Berserk jumped right back up before the rattata could attack again.

"Keep it up Berserk! Try a leer attack!" I shouted.

Berserk stood still, and gave its foe a menacing look. The rattata cowered in fear. _I wasn't too sure what leer meant in the pokedex, but this is definitely effective!_

"Don't be scared, Rattata!" assured my thieving opponent.

"Scratch him up while he's scared, Berserk!" I orderd.

Berserk seemed to enjoy that command. He charged at the scared rattata, and scratched it relentlessly. Within a matter of seconds the rattata's face was a bloody mess and it fell over.

"Damnit! Stupid rat!" Obviously annoyed, Lou returned the ratatta to his pokeball.

Turning back to me, he seized another ball and threw it. "Try this one on for size! Go Pidgey!" Out flew a small, brown bird pokemon. _I think I saw one of these on Route 29!_ I quickly took out my pokedex and it said; "PIDGEY, TINY BIRD POKEMON. COMMON IN GRASSY AREAS AND FORRESTS, IT IS VERY DOCILE AND WILL CHASE OFF ENEMIES BY FLAPPING UP SAND."

As I was putting away my pokedex, my foe yelled out "Pidgey! Use sand attack!" _Crap, crap! This guy tries to catch me off-guard! What a jerk! _The bird kicked up sand with its feet as Berserk stood still awaiting orders. Berserk realizing what was going on tried to cover its eyes from the oncoming sand. It was no good, though. I could tell that Berserk was temporarily blinded, and couldn't tell what was going on.

"Cheap shot, crapper!" I yelled at my enemy, taking a small amount of relish in directing my new-found swear word at Lou.

"Pidgey, tackle it while it's blinded!" yellled my chubby opponent.

"Berserk, dodge!" I shouted.

The pidgey flew up in the air and then charged Berserk while he was still trying to get sand out of his eyes. The brown bird hit Berserk right on the face, and he fell backwards from the blow.

"Get up, Berserk! You got this!"

"Tackle again, Pidgey!"

This time Berserk got up, and could see what was going on. But it was to no avail; Pidgey flew up even higher than before and dive-bombed with terrifying speed.

"Dodge!" I screamed out.

Berserk couldn't get out of the way in time. Pidgey tackled him again in the face, and he fell over sliding backwards towards me. _Ouch!_ _I think it's time for a switch._ _I hope he didn't faint._

"Return, Berserk!" I said zapping him with his pokeball. _I hope he's okay. _"And go, Jaws!" I shouted. Jaws hopped off my shoulder and entered the fray.

"Jaws, dodge his attacks and use water gun! Shoot him out of the air!" I ordered. _Thankfully, Jaws has more reach than Berserk. I think he'll handle this fine._

The pidgey was flying up high in the air again, preparing for another powerful tackle.

"Water gun, now!" I shouted.

A gush of water shot out of Jaws' mouth and hit the ascending bird. It knocked the pidgey into some nearby branches high up in a tree. The bird Pokémon was panting hard, and was trying to recover from the water attack. _This is in the bag!_

The brown bird recovered from the attack, and descended quickly to the ground. Jaws was aware of what it was planning on doing next from watching it fight Berserk – that darn sand attack. He let out another water gun attack as it was still flying down to the ground. The water was weighing down the bird's feathers, and it couldn't keep up the flying. It fell from the sky, crashing into the ground. Dirt flew up in the air when it crashed, and I wasn't sure if it was knocked out or not. I saw a red light teleporting back into its pokeball. The trainer looked panicky.

"Yes! Good job, Jaws!" I yelled.

"Now pay Blue for winning, you jerk!" shouted Quimbly from out of nowhere. _She finished her battle before me? Whoa._

The defeated chubby trainer defiantly shouted said; "No way!" His partner was now next to him whispering in his ear.

"If you don't we'll sic our Pokémon on you, scum!" said Quimbly. _Who knew she was so cutthroat! _

The trainer obliged Quimbly's request and walked over to me and handed me some cash. I counted the money; it totaled one hundred and two dollars.

"Thanks! Your Pidgey put up a great fight!" I said thankfully.

"I can't believe you lost, too. Let's go back to base," the fatter one said angrily. He released this weird yellow squinty-eyed pokemon that sat cross-legged on the ground.

"Teleport back to base, Abra." he ordered. In a blink of an eye, they were gone.

"Where did they go?" I shouted running to where they were last.

"I have no clue." responded Quim looking dumbfounded as well.

"I guess they went back to base or whatever, right?" I said reassuringly.

"Yeah, let's just move on." said Quim.

We walked for a couple more hours, and I looked down at my watch to see it would be dark soon.

"Hey let's set up the tent soon. It'll be dark in an hour or so." I said.

We stopped following the road, and found a clearing of trees to set up camp. To my surprise, Quimbly knew how to set up the tent with relative ease. I watched her set it up for a little while, so I'll learn later.

"You're pretty camp savvy, huh?" I said.

"Yeah, I've been camping all my life, B. This is easy. Why don't you get some wood for a fire?" she responded.

"Good idea!" _I didn't think about that!_

I looked around the trees a couple minutes away with Jaws for branches and the like. Sadly enough on my part, Jaws was doing a better job at finding suitable wood. We came back, and everything was ready for night-time. I laid down the sticks and branches for the fire, and Quimbly started it with flint.

"How did you do that?" I asked.

"I'll show you next time, okay?" she responded with a big yawn and sitting down. I did the same. _Yawns are so contagious!_

"Okay. You hungry? I got some PB&J's left." I said taking out the sandwiches wrapped in foil.

"Sounds good! But first could I heal Ledyba with one of your potions you got? That guy's pidgey hurt her pretty good." _I forgot about those! I bet Berserk could use a good healing, too._

"Another good idea, Quim. Now that you mention it, Berserk needs some healing, too!" I said taking two of the five potions out of my back pack. They were in small, purple containers. It had a trigger that releases the potion, I guess. I released Berserk from his pokeball. His pig-nose was swollen, and he had dried blood on his fur. _Crap! He doesn't look too hot!_ Quimbly released her Ledyba, and there were several cuts on its back. _I guess it got pecked a lot!_ I handed her one of the potions, and she sprayed its contents on Ledyba's wounds. Her wounds healed up, but left scars little scars behind.

"It's no Poke Center, but it'll do," she said, thanking me.

I sprayed the potion on Berserk's injuries, and it worked wonders. He was looking a lot healthier. His nose wasn't swollen anymore.

"So how did your battle go, Quim?" I asked. _I wanted to ask her this earlier, but she looked a little shaken up afterward._

"It went pretty well for the most part. I tried out my Ledyba against his rattata, and it didn't have a chance. It couldn't manage to reach her. Then he sent out his Pidgey, and it beat her up pretty bad. I guess bugs are bad against birds. But I used double team with my Eevee, and that confused the Pidgey. It kept attacking the wrong Eevees, and eventually he landed some attacks on it. It was a pretty easy fight for her," she finished, petting Eevee.

"Ah man! I totally forgot to use those T.M.s! Good thinking! And tell me about it with the flying types! I learned that flying is good against fighting type," I replied.

"Thanks, Blue! How did your fight go?" she returned, smiling.

"It went really well. Berserk owned the rattata, but it couldn't keep up with the pidgey. It used sand attack, and it didn't have a chance. Jaws took out the bird easy with water gun. So that guy didn't use that abra Pokémon on you?"

"Nope, he sure didn't. I thought that was kinda weird." she admitted.

"Hmm. I wonder why they were wearing those weird outfits. You think they were a part of some gang?"

"Yeah, probably. I mean, they were trying to rob us!" she cried.

"Crazy day, Quim. I'm pooped."

"Tell me about it, B. Let's return our Pokémon, and sleep in the tent." _I forgot I have to share that with her. That could be weird. If only she was a guy._

"Why do we need to return them? Can't they sleep outside, too?" I asked.

"Yeah, I guess. I think they get better sleep in there, though. That's what my Pa told me, anyways." she explained. We returned all of our Pokémon, and got ready for bed.

I crawled into the rickety green tent, and laid down the furthest away from Quimbly. She was busy putting out the fire. I yelled good night, and passed out.

"Good night Blue! Thanks for letting me tag along!"

* * *

_ If you've read this much so far, I'd appreciate a review. Let me know what you think of the story so far or what you think I should change. Thanks!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Deflation**

"Ahhh! But Quim, I can't work with this grumbling stomach!" I moaned this out while clutching my aching gut.

"I know, Blue. I'm starving, too, but we're out of sandwiches. Try to take your mind off it by helping me take down this tent," she suggested. I checked my poke gear's watch, and it read 7:00 A.M. _I'm not even awake enough for this!_

"Well, we can't just starve out here!" I said grumpily, while I was helping her take apart the tent. _Maybe she's tricking me into helping her because she's holding out on me - she probably has some food in that backpack of her's!_

"Yeah, I know," she said, sighing.

"Are you holding some food I'm not aware of?" I asked, still assisting her.

"Are you kidding me? Why would I?" she responded, rolling her eyes.

"Oh. Never mind..." I said quietly. _Looks like I was wrong..._

"Well, I do have an idea for some more food; we're going to have to hunt wild Pokémon." she said calmly.

"What! We're going to kill Pokémon for food?" I shouted at her. _I am not cool with killing. It's just too painful to think about, let alone do._

"Yeah. Is that really a problem? I'm used to killing miltanks and tauros at the ranch; it's a necessity, Blue." remarked Quimbly. _Is she trying to justify killing?_

"You don't understand what you're doing, Quimbly! You're ruining lives! What if we murdered a rattata that had a family? Do you know how that feels?" I shouted, starting to tear up. _Great, I'm crying now! I didn't even mean to!_

"What...? Are you okay?" she asked, looking concerned and confused.

"No! I'm not okay! My best friend killed my father!" I yelled, throwing one of the tent pipes on the ground. _Crap! Did I really say all that?_

"Aww, Blue! I'm so sorry – I had no idea!" she said, starting to cry as well. She dropped the tent pipe she was holding and dropped it. She ran over to me and hugged me tightly.

"Blue...what happened, if you don't mind me asking?" she said still holding onto me. _What do I do now? I might as well spill the beans._

"In New Bark Town, my best friend, Cas Clifford, and I decided we were going to run away. But before we did, we stopped at a Pokémon lab that my dad worked at. Cas broke in and killed my dad for some reason. He knocked me out after I saw what he did. Now, I'm a trainer, so I can avenge my dad." I explained. _That kinda feels good to talk about. I can't believe I told Quimbly about this._

"Oh...I had no clue that you were like this. I thought you were insensitive; I'm sorry for thinking you were an emotionless jerk," she said letting go of me.

"Thanks, I think," I said smiling slightly.

"You're welcome, Blue!" she said, returning a smile.

"So about food..." I continued, trying to change subjects.

"I still think hunting is our best option, Blue. I know you don't like the whole death deal, but try to think of it this way: These Pokémon will reproduce here. So whatever Pokémon we have to hunt, there will be plenty more to take its place."

"That makes sense, I guess. What's the plan?" I replied.

"Well, I think we could send our Pokémon out to see what they can find. Maybe they could get berries instead!" she suggested.

"I like the sound of that!" I exclaimed.

We released our Pokémon after we agreed on the plan of action. Jaws was ecstatic to see me, and jumped up on my shoulder. However, Berserk didn't seem very awake, and let out a long yawn. I rubbed his furry head a little in hopes of waking him up a little bit. Quimbly's Eevee was chipper, and she petted him. Her Ledyba looked a little sore from the battle yesterday, but seemed happy nonetheless. Quimbly ordered her Pokémon to look for different berries for us to eat. We decided that my Pokémon were more suitable for possible bloodshed, so I told Berserk to look for bird eggs up in trees. I told Quim that I'd go with Jaws to catch some fish. Quimbly consented, and she would finish up packing up our camp. As I was walking away with Jaws, I saw Berserk swing around up in the treetops. _I hope he doesn't run away; he's growing on me._ Quimbly's Eevee darted off through some bushes, and Ledyba buzzed away following Eevee.

Jaws and I walked around for a little while looking for water, and then we found a pond west of the camp. It had clear blue water, and I could spot a few Pokémon drinking from it. _Let's get this over with._ I instructed Jaws to jump in the water, and come back ashore with a fish. Jaws nodded in understanding, and waddled off the water's edge. He looked into the water for a second, and then dove in. _That was somewhat graceful! Do I have a skilled diver on me? _I walked near the edge as well, and tried to locate where he was swimming. I saw him swimming in the deeper part of the pond – it seemed a little deeper than ten feet. He looked determined. Jaws was swimming around swiftly in the water; he swam by tucking his arms and legs close to his body and making a worm-like motion with his body. _He doesn't paddle? That's kinda cool_ Then, I saw him start chasing an orange fish Pokémon that was above him. It was terribly slow compared to Jaws, and had a difficult time out swimming my totodile Pokémon. _You would think that fish would be faster than a crocodile. I guess Jaws is just better than that!_ He bit the orange fish underwater, and brought it up to the surface with it hanging out of his mouth. He swam over to me, and spat out the now flopping fish onto the ground. _I don't even want to scan it with my pokedex; better I don't know what it is before we kill it._

"Good job, Jaws! You're quite the swimmer!" I said smiling at my Pokémon. _Okay, now what? Should I make Jaws kill it or me? I guess him because he might need to at some point when protecting me or something..._

"Jaws, I need you to scratch it." I commanded halfheartedly. Jaws did as I said. He scratched the helpless Pokémon on its side, and it started to bleed.

"Okay, now bite it," I then ordered. Jaws bit the flailing Pokémon; he fit its whole head in his mouth. He bit down hard, and I covered my eyes. I heard a crunch then a rip, and when I looked again the Pokémon had been decapitated. The dead Pokémon's head had a blank expression on its face, yet the body was still wiggling. Blood was dripping from Jaws' mouth. _Oh god! He killed it without me even saying so. I wonder if that's just in their nature?_ I picked up the tail of the dead fish, and carried out in front of me protecting me from dripping blood.

"Alright, let's just get out of here," I muttered to Jaws. _He doesn't even seem phased by killing something. He seems a little happy, in fact._

We walked back to our camp with relative ease – the compass on my poke gear made directions pretty easy. The fish was done bleeding out by the time we got there. _That's good, I guess._ I presented Quimbly with what I found. She seemed excited about it.

"Good job! I bet Jaws got that fish easy!" she said, taking that fish from me. _How does she know everything?_

"Yeah, I guess. What are you going to do with it?" I asked.

"I'm going to clean the fish, so we can eat it later, silly!" she exclaimed smiling at me.

"Oh, right. Good job packing up everything. Has any of the Pokémon returned?" I asked noticing the tent packed up.

"Nope, but they shouldn't be too long, I hope." she returned.

I took this opportunity to catch some more z's. _I had a hard time sleeping next to her last night._ I returned Jaws, and laid down on the grass. I propped up my head on my not very comfortable backpack, and dozed off.

* * *

"Blue! Wake up!" screamed Quimbly, standing next to me.

I slowly opened my eyes, and saw dozens of Pidgeys flying above us. _What the crap!_ I quickly stood up, and slung my backpack on.

"What is going on?" I shouted back. _I don't think I've ever been so alert after sleeping._

"Berserk ticked off a flock of Pidgeys when he stole the eggs! We need to run!" she explained equally as loud. I spotted Berserk dodging pecking birds while carrying a bunch of eggs. _Crap! This is bad!_

We ran as fast as we could to the east of the camp – I tried to direct us towards us to the road. We eventually reached the highway, but the birds were still on our tails and pecking us! Suddenly while we were running alongside the road, a car zoomed past us and that caused the birds to fly back to their nests. _Thank Arceus!_

"Oh my! We are so lucky!" panted Quimbly, bending over with her hands on her knees.

"I know!" I said trying to catch my breath.

"So what now?" I asked.

"I guess, if you're still hungry we could eat some food. I prepared the fish, and collected all the berries my Pokémon found while you were snoozing," Quimbly replied. _Sounds like I was out for quite a while!_

"Crap! How long was I out for?" I asked.

"It really wasn't all that long, B. Maybe fifteen minutes, I'd say. Ledyba and Eevee came back soon after you fell asleep," she answered.

"Oh, okay. That's not too bad, I guess. And I'm not really all that hungry after waking up to angry Pidgeys to be honest," I admitted.

"Yeah, me either," she agreed.

We walked along the road for another hour. We tried to avoid wild Pokémon after our last run in. My hunger lurched back soon after I felt Berserk rummaging through my backpack for something.

"Can we take a break to eat? I'm starved," I said stopping the march.

"Yeah, that sounds great," Quim replied.

We didn't bother walking away from the Route 30 highway this time, and settled down a little ways to the West of it. Quimbly, me, and all of our Pokémon sat on the grass, and began our feast. She showed me the different berries her Pokémon collected; small red ones called cheri berries, round blue ones called oran berries, and pink pecha berries. Quimbly gave the Pokémon berries to munch on – Ledyba seemed especially fond of them! She cooked all the eggs (four total) over a small flame. _I'm glad she knows how to do that! _We ate most of the eggs, and gave the leftovers to our Pokémon. Ledyba didn't seem to enjoy eating the eggs as much as the others. _Jaws seems to only like the eggs! He hardly ate any berries!_ _I wonder if he's a carnivore?_ _I am thinking so, especially with that whole fish episode…_

I helped Quimbly clean up our mini-camp, and our Pokémon played amongst themselves. I watched more than actually helped. _It looks like Jaws and Berserk are finally getting along!_ I watched all the Pokémon play a tag kind of game; they were all chasing each other. _That's kinda funny._ They were all smiling and looked to be having a good time despite our last scare. _I guess that's Pokémon for you._

We left our brunch campsite, and continued up the path towards Violet City. _This is getting boring again. I want to do some more battles; that's why I'm a trainer._

"Hey Quim," I started.

"Yeah, what's up?" she replied.

"I think it's about time for me to call in that training favor," I answered.

"Really?" she asked, looking uneasy.

"Yeah! I'm getting totally bored just walking. Let's spice it up!" I said, getting a little louder.

We moved away from the road once more out of fear that our Pokémon might accidentally get pushed into the road and get hit by a car while we battle. We didn't find a nice clearing like we found to spend the night, but I didn't care.

"Alright, this is as good as it's going to get! Now, go a little ways away from me, so we can have some space," I commanded to my travel companion.

"Sure thing," she replied. _She doesn't seem too excited about this. That's weird._

We separated from one another, and then started battling. I decided to send Jaws out first because I wanted to try out some new moves.

"Go Jaws!" I shouted.

"Berserk, sit this one out," I whispered to my monkey that still sat upon my head. It let out a low bark in understanding.

"Go Ledyba!" Quimbly ordered.

Her bug Pokémon left her side and hovered towards to my totodile. _I wonder what kind of attacks that has. Better I hit first and find out later._ I ordered Jaws to try a new attack called scary face. In response to my command, Jaws stopped smiling and made a menacing face to his opponent. This caused Ledyba to cower away from Jaws. _She looks terrified!_

"Now water gun it!" I shouted.

Jaws unleashed his water attack at the scared ladybug Pokémon. Ledyba didn't even try to dodge the attack, and took the full force of it. She toppled over, and Quimbly returned her to her pokeball. _That was easy!_

I decided to replace Jaws with Berserk to be a little fair; Berserk wasn't as well trained as Jaws. I zapped Jaws back to his pokeball and sent in Berserk. _This should still be fairly easy; Eevee seems like a pretty weak Pokémon._

"Eevee use double team!" she ordered as soon as Eevee entered the fray. _Oh yeah! I need to do those T.M. things after the battle! I keep forgetting!_

"Berserk don't let her! Use low kick!" I shouted.

Berserk made a leap into the air, and extended his leg aimed at Eevee. Unfortunately, Eevee was quicker than my mankey Pokémon. She had already created multiple copies of herself that formed a circular unit before he reached her. Berserk came flying down aimed at one of the many Eevees, (there were six, I think). When he connected with it he went right through it and crashed hard into the ground. _I knew it'd be a fake! I have to figure out which one is the real deal!_

"Berserk! Scratch the one in the back!" I ordered. _I hope that's the right one! I really can't tell the Eevees apart._

Berserk dashed to the Eevee I ordered, and scratched with his paw. And it was a hit! The small mammal Pokémon let out a whimper of pain from the attack.

"I forfeit, Blue!" screamed Quimbly. She returned Eevee to her pokeball.

"Okay, well that was...quick," I responded. _That was disappointing._

"I don't want my Pokémon to get hurt, Blue! Are you happy?" Quimbly continued. _She seems really upset about something. This was just training, anyways. I didn't hurt her Pokémon...too bad._

"Not so much anymore, Quim. This was just practice, I'm sorry if I got you upset – Geez!" I said, not really feeling bad.

"You didn't act like it was practice! You really could've hurt Ledyba, Blue! Did you forget about her wounds?" _Way to sound like my Mom._

"Oh. Sorry, I guess. Can we just keep going?" I answered. _I did forget that Ledyba got hurt yesterday! I really need to be more careful about stuff like that. I'd feel horrible if I killed it. _

We left our impromptu battleground and continued trekking Route 30. I checked the map on the poke gear, and we were only less than halfway through it. _Have we really been this slow?_ I informed Quimbly of our sluggish pace, and we decided to return all Pokémon and really hustle. It was a quiet walk without my Pokémon walking with me. Quimbly and I weren't talking much because of the battle. _I feel bad, but I don't know what to say. _

When we met the halfway mark, we ran into several trainers. It seemed like they were just beginning trainers like us, and going to get their first badge in Violet. _This is perfect then; we're on the same playing field! _Quimbly didn't feel like taking on anyone since her colossal defeat against me. I battled a ten year old kid named Clarke from Cherrygrove. He didn't seem too thrilled to be battling me, but obliged me nonetheless. He wasn't much of a challenge; his Pokémon was a ferret called Sentret. I let Berserk fight it, and he beat the long-tailed Pokémon effortlessly. _I'm invincible!_ I took on two more trainers after Clarke, and they weren't much better at battling than him - I defeated them without breaking a sweat.

_Is this what all trainers are going to be like? Being a Champion will be a cinch! _I thought strutting up the path. It was only four in the afternoon, so I still had plenty of time to take on more trainers and make it to Violet City. _Cas has no chance._

"Hey, you two!" someone shouted. I looked to my left and spotted a nerdy looking guy. He was sitting on the ground looking at a piece of paper.

"Hey Quim, do you think he is talking to us?" I asked her to the side.

"Yeah, obviously. We should go say hi," she answered. We walked over to where the strange guy was sitting, and greeted him. He looked a little older than us, but he definitely wasn't an adult. He had dark skin, glasses, and puffy, black hair. _That guy is funny looking!_

"Hey! What's up, dork?" I greeted, smirking. _He's just like those other trainers. I totally will take this guy out and get paid. I'm unstoppable. _Quimbly glared at me. _Is really _s_he still upset with me?_

"What? Uh, hey? I was going to ask if one of you had a map on you. I spilled coffee on it, and I can't read where I am," he replied arching his right eyebrow in confusion.

"Yeah I've got a map on my poke gear, and I'd be happy to show you under one condition. You battle me, nerd-o," I said in a harsh tone. _This is typical me-intimidating-nerd-talk. I scare the crap out of them, and I get what I want. This is awesome._

"Are you sure, kid? I'm not a pushover," he responded calmly.

"Crap yeah, I am! Bring it, nerd!" I shouted.

"Alright, if you say so. I'll let my Pokémon do the talking for me," he responded, still calm as could be.

"Blue, are you sure this is a good idea? I have a bad feeling about this," Quimbly whispered. I gave her an assuring are-you-serious look, and made room for the battle.

_Alright. Who first? Berserk, so I can have Jaws for backup. Chances are Berserk will be all I need anyways._

I threw out my poke ball in front of me, and my mankey Pokémon appeared. My opponent threw his pokeball and released a strange, almost human-like Pokémon. It was about the same height as Berserk, but might've had a few inches on him. It had short, white arms, and a dress-like lower body – Its legs were not visible. It was pale with a green, bulbous head. It had red bump-like horns on top of its head. _What the heck is this thing? I can't see that things eyes. That bothers me._ I took out my red pokedex and scanned the strange creature. "RALTS, FEELING POKEMON. THE HORNS ON ITS HEAD PROVIDE A STRONG POWER THAT ENABLES IT TO SENSE PEOPLE'S EMOTIONS," spoke my device. _What does psychic mean? The pokedex says Ralts is a psychic type._

"Ralts, use confusion!" ordered my opponent.

"Berserk...dodge!" I ordered. _He's excellent at evading attacks; this Ralts doesn't have a chance!_

Berserk jumped up into the air, in hopes of evading an attack, but nothing happened. Then, while Berserk was still in the air, a suddenly a faint pink hue enveloped Berserk while he was still in the air. _He's floating in the air!_

"What the crap is going on?" I shouted.

Then, with a flick of Ralts' wrist he flung Berserk into a nearby tree. I ran over to him to see if he was okay, and he was knocked out cold. _What kind of attacks are these? Psychic Pokémon are too strong!_ I then sent out my most reliable Pokémon, Jaws. _I know he can do this!_

"Jaws, you got this! Use water gun!"

"Confusion, Ralts!" commanded my opponent.

Jaws shot out a blast of water aimed at his enemy, and it stopped suddenly, not reaching its mark. The water was floating some distance away from the psychic pokemon. I looked to Ralts and saw it holding up its arms, as if it was trying to hold back the water. _Is it doing that with its mind? It seems focused - I think now's Jaws' chance!_

"Jaws, run over and scratch it!" I ordered.

The mushroom-head Pokémon was still struggling to stop the water gun attack, and it didn't see Jaws rush over to its left. Jaws scratched hard upon its round head. It started swaying, and the water gun attack came out of nowhere and knocked it over. _Whoa! This battle is weird! I guess it couldn't focus enough to hold off the water gun attack after Jaws hurt it._

"Yay! Go Blue!" shouted Quimbly who was by my side.

"Nice! You have an impressive totodile there! I hate to do this to you, but go Zangoose!" he said throwing out his next pokeball. The mammal Pokémon had white fur covering its entire body, and also with also patches of red fur on its claws, left ear, and an m shape design on its chest. It had large, pointy ears, a white, furry tail, and large, sharp claws. And it was a much larger Pokémon; like, four feet tall! Its scary red eyes were fixed upon Jaws, and it looked ready to fight. I hastily scanned the Pokémon with my pokedex to learn more about it. "ZANGOOSE, CAT FERRET POKEMON. ITS FUR WOULD ALL STAND ON IF IT SMELLED A SEVIPER NEARBY. ITS SHARP CLAWS TEAR UP ITS FOES," spoke my pokedex. _This Zangoose sounds scary!_

"Swords dance, Zangoose!" shouted the nerd.

"Uh, scary face!"

Jaws made an intimidating scowl at his enemy, but it didn't affect the fearsome Pokémon. The zangoose began moving in lightning-quick movements around the battlefield and rubbing its claws together; every time he did it made a 'shink' sound and his claws glistened.

"Slash!"

In a blink of the eye, Zangoose appeared right in front Jaws. _Oh no! It's so crapping fast! _Then before I could give Jaws an order Zangoose quickly slashed Jaws on his side. Jaws turned to his right so my dad's shades weren't hit. _Wow..._ _It's like those scary movies I wasn't supposed to watch. _A spurt of blood shot out from Jaws' side.

"No, Jaws!" I screamed. I ran over to my Pokémon and picked him up. Blood was gushing out of his side. _I lost. I can't believe I just lost. I can't lose him! _Quimbly rushed to my side, and looked worried. Jaws closed his eyes, and started to breathe funny. _If only I wasn't such a jerk, that guy wouldn't have wanted to kill him!_

"Ha! That's what you get, ya dick!" remarked my victorious opponent.

"Look, I'm sorry for making fun of you. You're definitely better than me. Can you help me? I don't wan my Pokémon to die!" I shouted, tearing up.

"Yeah, you're lucky I'm a nice guy," he responded. He pulled out a golden, diamond-shaped object out of his backpack and ran over to where I was.

"Set 'em down," he instructed tersely. I placed my wounded Pokémon on the ground. Jaws was bleeding out heavily; the grass around him was red. The guy took his diamond-shaped thing and jabbed it into Jaws' heart.

"What are you doing?" I shouted angrily.

"I'm reviving him," he responded. As he spoke those words, Jaws opened his eyes and blinked a couple times. I picked him up and started hugging him.

"That was so close! I can't thank you enough!" I shouted while holding tight to my injured totodile. _This was too close! I have got to be more careful._

"Hey! You might not want to do that! His wound isn't sealed or anything. Hurry, use a potion!" he shouted towering over me. I pulled out one of the purple containers out of my backpack and sprayed it on Jaws' side. It worked kind of like stitches on a person, and closed his wound forming a scab. _I love this technology!_

"That's better. Now hug him all you want, kid." he said sighing after.

"Thanks! My name's Blue! I'm sorry for being a jerk; I thought you would be a pushover." I said sticking out my hand.

"My name is Miles. And it looks like you learned your lesson. You should be more careful of what you say. I've been a trainer for years now, and I could have reacted a lot differently than what happened," he said. He ignored my outstretched hand.

"..R-really? Do you think you could, uh, teach me how to be good like you?" I mumbled.

"Hell no..Blue! Why would I? You treated me like crap, forced me into a battle, made me use one of my revives, – Do you realize how much those cost? - and now you want me to spend **my** time teaching you stuff? You're a jerk, you know that?" Miles answered, getting frustrated.

"Yeah, I guess so," I replied, frowning. _This guy is making me feel like crap._

"I'm out of here. You Johto people are real ass-holes," he continued.

"Blue's really sorry, Mr. Miles. I had a feeling it might end like this, please forgive him. He didn't mean anything by it; he's just an idiot. I'm sorry for everything," chimed Quimbly. _Wow, I can't believe this either. Does everyone think I'm a jerk or stupid?_

Before Miles took another step, he turned to both of us and looked as if he saw a ghost.

"Wow. That was really cool of you...?" he spoke.

"Quimbly," she filled in.

"Quimbly, that was real cool of you to stick up for your jerk-off friend. I can tell you're being honest, so I'll take your word," he continued absently, looking upon Quimbly.

"Thanks. Again, I'm real sorry how all this turned out-"

"Do you still need to see the map, Miles?" I interrupted. _I got to make it up to this guy!_

"Yeah, actually," he replied turning back to me.

"Where you heading?" I asked, standing up. I returned Jaws to his pokeball. _He needs some sleep._

"I'm going to Violet City; I want to start collecting badges here in Johto," he said.

"Really? Cool! We're going the same way, then! Quimbly and I are going to Violet for the same thing!" I replied in excitement.

"Are you from somewhere else, Miles?" asked Quimbly.

"Yeah, I'm actually from Hoenn. That's where I got most of my Pokémon. If you could point me in the right direction I'll be on my way," he said shifting his eyes around.

"Cooooooooool! We saw a Blaziken the other night; that's from Hoenn, right?" I squealed in excitement.

"Cool," he replied not really paying attention to me.

"You don't want to travel with us there, Miles?" asked Quimbly.

"To be honest, no I want to travel by myself. You two would just slow me down," he explained.

"Oh. Well it's North and West of here. I think if you follow the road, you'll be there in no time," said Quimbly taken back.

"Thanks!" replied Miles, smiling. He then turned around and walked away from us. _He really didn't like me._

"H-hey Quim. Thanks for sticking up for me," I said turning to my friend.

"No problem. I think we both learned something this, Blue. I'm not going to forget that battle for some time," she responded still looking a little sullen.

We continued following the road on Route 30 for hours, and I didn't spot Miles on the way. _I guess we won't be seeing him any time soon._ At one point we came across a sign that read "Route 31". _We're almost there!_

"I think we should keep moving," I began after reading the sign.

"You think so? I mean, it's been such a long day," she said frowning slightly.

"Yeah! We're only like five to ten miles away from it. I can't wait another day, Quim. It's killing me to get my first gym badge," I responded getting excited and loud.

"Okay… I guess," she said smiling.

"It's only six! We have plenty of time to make it there!" I said after looking at my poke gear's clock. I patted her on the back for encouragement. She chuckled and then hugged me.

"Blue! I'm so glad we're traveling together," she spoke still holding on to me.

"…Yeah, me too," I said pushing her off. _Why does she do that?_

We decided to stop for a bit to eat some dinner, and get our heads together. I let out my Pokémon to join us and Quimbly did the same. Jaws seemed a little stiff from his battle, and Berserk took this opportunity to mess with him. Berserk would jump upon Jaws' back and Jaws would struggle to get him off; once Berserk jumped off Jaws would chase him. _Oh those guys!_ I laughed the hardest I'd laughed in a long time. Quimbly joined in, too. Eventually, I made Berserk stop his teasing, and we all sat down for dinner. We ate some cooked fish that Quimbly cooked and berries for dinner. _The fish isn't all that great. It's just kinda bland. I shouldn't tell Quim that, though. The berries are surprisingly sweet and tasty! _I rubbed my belly as if to say thank you, and my Pokémon mimicked me, doing the same.

"Your Pokémon are so cute!" shrieked Quimbly, giggling.

"Uh, thanks. Can we get a move on?" I asked. _Girls are so weird._

"Sure!" she replied.

It really didn't take us all that much longer to reach our destination. The highway met the city and intertwined into one thriving city. We walked into Violet, and was pleasantly surprised. I expected it to be similar to Cherrygrove City, but it was kind of different. It was about the same size as the last city I visited, but it seemed less busy. Instead of streetlights on throughout the city, lamp posts took their place. Overall it seemed like a much calmer city. I spotted the humongous tower Hughie mentioned before; it must have been at least five stories tall and it looked like it was moving. _I should call that guy, and let him know we made it okay. That's the less jerk-ish thing to do._

As we were strolling through the city streets looking for the Violet City Poke Center, I mentioned my idea to Quimbly. We agreed to call him once were settled for the night. We found the Poke Center, and after handing the nurse our pokeballs, I asked the nurse (_Who looked a lot like Nurse Bliss!_) if we could stay here. She showed us the trainer's lodging in the back. It was a kinda weird situation; she walked us through a hospital area where I saw lots of medical equipment – _I hate needles! – _and then into a hallway with many rooms. She gave each of us our own room; apparently not too many trainers stay here long. _I'm just excited to sleep by myself!_

I threw my backpack on the floor, and rested my body on the comfy bed. _This is nice. I don't miss that tent an ounce._ I closed my eyes, and then something jumped on me.

"Blue! Don't go to sleep yet! We have to call Champ!" she shouted, shaking me.

"I'm up!" I said irritably, pushing her off me.

We sat side by side on the bed, and I pressed the phone button on the poke gear. _I don't have his phone number! _

"Isn't his phone number in your back pocket, Blue?" she said grinning.

"Oh yeah!" I responded, pulling out a slip of paper. I typed the digits into the device, and pressed the call button.

After a couple of rings Hughie answered, and an image of his face appeared on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Champ!" we said in unison.

"Heya you two! Are you in Violet yet?"

"Yeah, we just got in. We're staying in a Poke Center for the night. We had a crazy time getting over here; let me tell you," began Quim.

"Oh yeah? Have any problems?"

"Yeah, actually. I almost got Jaws killed today for being too reckless," I said. _Man, I'm so glad he's okay._

"Well, that's rough, but it sounds like you won't be doing that any time soon!" replied Hughie, laughing generously at his own joke.

We chatted for some while in great detail of our journey to Violet City. I decided I had enough when Quimbly started yanking my hand closer to her face to get more one-on-one time with Hughie. Quimbly went back to her room, and I was ready for a good night's sleep. I turned off the lights, jumped in bed, and pulled the sheets over me. Then I heard three knocks coming from the door. _What does she want now?_ I thought sighing as I got out of bed. I opened the door and no one was there. _That's weird. I know I heard someone knocking. I've got a bad feeling about this._ I laid back down in my bed and thought about tomorrow. _Ghosts and gym leader!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Boo!**

"Hey Quim! I need your help. I can't decide – gym or ghosts?" I asked, stopping us outside the Poke Center.

"Uhh ghosts, really?" my friend responded. She wasn't wearing her hat today, and her hair looked frizzy. _I miss her hat._

"Alright! Ghosts it is!" I declared. Quimbly shook her head in response. _I definitely didn't do anything. I'm going to ignore this and catch an awesome ghost Pokémon. _ My stomach let out a low grumble.

"Ack! We need to eat, now! My stomach is growling like a Pokémon!" I said, gripping my gut. We decided to make a pit stop at a local restaurant and pigged out. I really wanted to let Jaws and Berserk out to munch on some of this awesome grub, but Quimbly told me that wouldn't be proper etiquette. I hid away some biscuits in my backpack for them to snack on later when Quimbly wasn't looking – they'll enjoy that!

"Y'know that's not really healthy for Pokémon to eat people-food, Blue," nagged Quimbly. I released Jaws and Berserk after we left the restaurant, and fed them the biscuits. Jaws was aching still from our battle with Miles' Zangoose yesterday; however, his wound on his left side was healed – all that remained was a long scar from his shoulder to his stomach. The nurse said that Jaws healed up nicely, but I shouldn't use him to battle for a while so he can rest. _Like that's going to happen!_

"Really? How come? Food's just food," I replied, shrugging my shoulders.

"Yeah, don't be silly, B. They need healthy food for combat and better living. If you continue to feed them junk they might get sick or fat," explained Quimbly. I continued to feed my Pokémon our leftovers while she rambled on, not minding one word she said.

"Oh...but look how happy they are!" I said smiling. _I feel terrible about what happened to Jaws. I want to make it up for him. He can pig out all he wants!_

"You ought to feed them stuff you can buy from Poke Marts. I still have some berries left that they can eat, too. They need to eat healthier," she continued. _Duly noted, but now they feast!_

"Okay, sure," I said, still ignoring her.

I allowed my Pokémon to stay out with us while we walked around town; they enjoy new sights as much as I do. Violet City was rather unique because it was busy with cars and stuff, but it also had old, antiquated stuff like Sprout Tower. I could definitely see myself living here.

"Hey! I think it's time for us to go ghost catching!" I exclaimed, remembering what I wanted to get done today. It was only ten o'clock in the morning, so we had plenty of time to check out the gym as well. I slept so good last night in the Poke Center that Quimbly had to come and wake me up – talk about annoying!

"Uh...okay," replied Quim uneasily.

We walked up to the giant tower, and gazed upon its greatness. _It's so biiiiiiiig!_ From that close you could really tell that the building was moving or shifting around ever so slightly, as if it was alive. _ What's that about?_ I saw a small sign outside the tower's door, but I ignored it outright and opened the door.

"Wait!" shouted Quimbly. I closed the door and looked at her.

"What's up?" I asked.

"I read this little sign, and it said this tower is actually a Bellsprout Pokémon!" exclaimed Quimbly.

"Whoa, what? How can a Pokémon be a tower? That's nuts!" I said, confused.

"I don't know...but I think it's been around for a long time – like a century," she replied.

"A century! Man, that sounds like a long time...let's go!" I said, opening the door once again. _I wanna catch a ghost! _We returned our Pokémon once more because Quim said we don't want to make a scene or something.

Quimbly followed me inside the tower. The inside was boring - worn wood floors, holey wood walls, and dusty wood ceilings. However, there were some cool-ish stuff, to boot. A pair of bronze flower Pokémon statues were standing in the walkway entrance, and I could see in the center of the tower a slowly wriggling wooden covered structure – It caused the floor to shake every time it shifted. _What is that?_ We were greeted with a bald middle-aged man wearing robes. _Is this a bathhouse? _

"Greetings, children! Are you here to learn of the history of Sprout Tower?" he questioned, gesturing with his arms wide open in the air.

"Hiya, mister. I'm here to catch some ghost Pokémon, see ya!" I spoke briefly, leaving Quimbly to deal with the baldy. _I don't feel like wasting time standing around hearing some boring history lesson! Quimbly seems to like learning stuff; it'll be fine. She'll catch up with me later._

I darted off passing the man who was talking to Quimbly. I couldn't find any stairs to ascend the tower, but rather hanging ladders. I climbed up the only one in the bottom level. When I climbed up the last step reaching the next floor, I was greeted by another bald man in a robe, except this one looked much younger than the last one.

"Excuse me, what are you doing up here?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Yeah, I heard there was ghost Pokémon here, and I want to catch one!" I replied with a big, wild smile. _This should get me in; always works with Mom._

"Trainers aren't allowed up here, only sages of Sprout Tower. We are here to maintain the tower and the spirits inside. If you do not leave, I will use force," he replied calmly reaching for something in one of his pockets.

"What's the deal? I'm not hurting anyone!" I shouted in defense.

"Bellsprout, vine whip!" he ordered succinctly after throwing a pokeball near my feet. _What the crap is this guy's deal? _The pokeball released a grass Pokémon with a yellow, cupped face.

I threw out Berserk's pokeball in front of the oncoming Bellsprout in self-defense. _I really don't want to fight this guy, but he's asking for it. _Berserk came out in a red flash and pounding his chest – _He's ready for battle! _I hastily whipped out my pokedex to learn more about my opponent; " BELLSPROUT, FLOWER POKEMON. IT PLANTS ITS FEET DEEP UNDERGROUND TO REPLENISH WATER. IT CAN'T ESCAPE ITS ENEMY WHILE IT'S ROOTED."

The yellow flower Pokémon extended one of its green, leafy arms a couple of feet and slung it aimed at Berserk. He dodged the attack instinctively, and awaited orders.

"Berserk, fury swipes!" I bellowed.

Berserk swiped his claws at its grass Pokémon opponent, and it swerved its green, stem like torso away from the attack while not moving an inch. _I gotta admit, t__hat was pretty cool! I've never seen anything like that_!

"Bellsprout, wrap!" my opponent commanded, keeping his calm demeanor.

It, then made another whip attack, but this time with its brown, root-like leg. Berserk was still reeling from it subtly dodging his last attack to notice the Bellsprout's leg coming at him. It wrapped the root leg around Berserk's body, binding his arms. _Crap! This isn't looking good!_ I noticed that it wasn't strong enough to lift Berserk off the ground, and a great idea struck me.

"Berserk, run over to Bellsprout and Low Kick its other leg!"

Bellsprout didn't let go of my Pokémon and was continuing to squeeze him. Berserk was grimacing in pain from the binding attack. _C'mon! I know you're stronger than this!_ A short moment later, Berserk mustered up enough strength and ran over to the nearby Bellsprout. As he moved in, Berserk made a incredibly low jump off the ground (that damn plant was really restricting his movements.) and kicked his opponent's other leg. The Bellsprout toppled over and retracted his leg from Berserk's body.

"Now fury swipes!"

Berserk jumped on top of his enemy and furiously cut his opponent with his claws. The bellsprout oozed green liquid, but still retained its blank face. A red light shot out, and returned him to his master's pokeball.

"You have bested me in combat. I will allow you, and only you, to catch Pokémon here. If you run into other Sprout Tower monks they will battle you." said the monk. He bowed afterwards.

"Thanks! See ya!" I responded. _ That was a good fight! Now to do what I came here to do – catch a ghost!_

I sped off from the sage and searched for wild Pokémon. Unfortunately, I only found my least favorite Pokémon (rattatas) and the grass Pokémon the monk used. I decided to climb up another ladder in hopes of finding a ghost Pokémon.

The next floor was darker than the last; there were fewer candles in the room. I spotted another sage on this level, but this time he didn't see me. I wasn't looking for a fight, so I avoided him altogether. Again I was out of luck, and didn't find any Pokémon on this floor – I looked everywhere, too! I found another ladder in the corner of the room and climbed up it.

This floor was darker than the last; there was a single candle lighting up the entire level. It was far creepier as well; an eerie mist flooded the room. I couldn't see much of anything, and walked around with my arms out. Suddenly, I felt something moist run up my neck; I had goosebumps instantly. I turned around to find what I was looking for, a ghost! From what I could see, it looked like a large floating head with large, sinister eyes and a huge, creepy grin. I scanned it with my pokedex, and it spoke: "GASTLY, GAS POKEMON. ITS BODY IS MADE OF GAS. DESPITE LACKING SUBSTANCE, IT CAN ENVELOPE AN OPPONENT OF ANY SIZE AND CAUSE SUFFICATION." _Whoa! I better be careful. _

As soon as the pokedex finished speaking, the Gastly vanished. _Crap! Where did it go?_ I felt something moist touch me once more, and I turned to see the Gastly was floating behind me. It smiled and stuck out its long tongue at me. _Enough of this! I'm gonna catch this sucker! _I released Berserk to take out this ghost; Jaws seemed like he might not be fit for the battle from yesterday's fight. The red light from the pokeball gave me a chance to get a better look at the wild Pokémon; it was a dark purple and had a huge red tongue.

"Berserk scratch!" I ordered.

The monkey Pokémon sped over to its opponent and scratched it. The ghost simply stood there, and his paw went right through him. _It did nothing? How can this be?_ The wild gastly proceeded to lick Berserk with his large tongue. This caused Berserk to become immobile and tremble.

"Try a low kick!"

Berserk didn't move an inch; he kept shaking. I couldn't see his face, but I bet it was terrified. _Crap! Change out!_ I returned my mankey and swapped him in for Jaws. Jaws seemed excited for combat. _I can't let him get hit on his side; I don't want that to scar to bust._

"Water gun!"

Berserk unleashed his water attack at his floating enemy. The Gastly was hit by the water, and fell to the ground. _I don't understand, but awesome!_

"Good job!" I yelled.

I threw out an unused poke ball aimed at the downed ghost Pokémon, and it was zapped inside. The poke ball moved ever so slightly twice, and then it released the wild Pokémon. It smirked, and hovered towards Jaws. _Uh-oh!_

"Water gun!"

Another shot of water hit the ghost Pokémon in the face, and fell to the floor again. _It's gotta work now!_ I threw another pokeball, and it zapped the Gastly inside. It moved several times once again, but then it stopped, sealing the apparition inside.

"Yes! I got me a ghost!" I shouted.

I picked up Jaws, and hugged him. "You are the best!" Jaws snorted and smiled in return. I sent him back to his pokeball, and walked over to my newly captured Pokémon's poke ball. I picked it up and stared at it for a few seconds. _Now what should I name you? _I thought looking at the red and white ball. I took a couple of seconds to think of a fitting name; _Smiley!_ I released my new Pokémon to see what he thought of his new name.

"Smiley?" I asked the Pokémon floating directly in front of me. He winked at me, and I laughed. _This thing definitely has a sense of humor._

We walked around for a little while – I couldn't find the descending ladder. Smiley got along with me instantly; faster than the other two. His four foot tall body/head floated near me, and would randomly appear in front of me with a scary face. _He's trying to scare me after I caught him! This Pokémon is hilarious!_ _Ouch!_ I bumped into a ladder coming from the floor above us as I was laughing at Smiley. _Should I go up? I really don't need to, but I might find something worthwhile up there._ I climbed up the ladder expecting another dark room, but it was the opposite. It was a well lit floor with a shrine in the middle of the room. I walked over the golden shrine to check it out.

"What are you doing here?" spoke someone in a low voice, grabbing my shoulder. I turned around to see another bald man, but with a thick, white mustache.

"I, uh..." I stammered.

"You must be quite the trainer to make it up here. You defeated the sages on the other levels, and passed through the spirits?" he questioned.

"Well, sort of. I fought one guy, and beat him. He let me go up, and later I caught this gastly," I said showing him my Pokémon with my left hand. Smiley stuck out his tongue at the sage. _Don't laugh!_ I thought, stifling a snort.

"Impressive! You must battle me," demanded the man.

"Okay..." _This guy looks tough for an old guy, unlike Hughie. I hope my guys have enough fight left in them._

We made space for the battle, and sent out our first Pokémon. He chose a Bellsprout like the other sages. I decided to swap Smiley out for Jaws because Jaws is my most reliable Pokémon.

"Vine whip," calmly ordered my opponent.

"Water gun!" I shouted.

The Bellsprout's attack hit before Jaws could launch his own, and he flew back from the attack. He had a large red mark on his right side. He struggled to get back on his feet, but then fell over. _How could he be defeated in one blow? Is he super tired or something? Are grass type pokemon better than water?_ My head was reeling from the consequences of choosing Jaws first, but despite that I sent Berserk in for battle.

"You know what to do! Fury swipes!" I ordered.

"Vine whip."

The Bellsprout launched another whip attack with its arm, and Berserk nimbly dodged the attack by leaping over his enemy. _I love that! _ He proceeded to swipe at his foe's backside with his sharp claws. The Bellsprout moaned in pain, and retreated back to his pokeball. The sage threw out another pokeball, and released an owl Pokémon. It was a small brown bird with red eyes and a single leg. I researched it with my pokedex because it was new; "HOOTHOOT, OWL POKEMON. IT HAS A PERFECT SENSE OF TIME. WHATEVER HAPPENS, IT KEEPS RHYTHM BY PRECISELY TILTING ITS HEAD IN TIME." _Berserk's not too good against flying Pokémon, but I think he can best it. _

"Hypnosis," ordered the sage.

"Leer!" I commanded.

Berserk made the first move, and made a look at his opponent. Hoothoot backed away from Berserk, but then a second later it regained confidence and performed its attack. It cooed and made weird purple rings appear that spiraled towards Berserk. _I have no clue what's going on!_ For whatever reason, this lulled Berserk asleep; he sat down and began snoring loudly.

"Now, peck."

"Wake up, Berserk! Now's not a time to be sleeping!" I shouted.

Berserk remained still, and the Hoothoot dove at him from up high. It made contact with its beak on Berserk's forehead. He fell over, and remained asleep. _Why didn't that wake him up?_ I waited for him to jump back on his feet, but it didn't happen. _This is so stupid!_ I returned him back to his pokeball. _He better be awake later!_

I threw out my last able Pokémon. _Smiley has got to do it! This all rides on you!_ Smiley came out grinning, eager to fight. I didn't really have a chance to check out what attacks he had, but I did my best to guess.

"Lick!" I commanded.

"Hypnosis," he calmly spoke.

The small owl performed the purple ring attack, but Smiley vanished. He, then, appeared behind his enemy and licked it with his enormous tongue. _He is really good at that!_ The Hoothoot fell from the air and remained stiff. _There's no way that was a one-hit k.o.! _

"Hypnosis," my opponent repeated.

"Uh, lick it again?" I said, unsure what to do.

Smiley approached the downed bird, and licked it. The bird remained motionless, and couldn't defend itself. Smiley licked it a couple more times with his enormous tongue, and the Hoothoot closed its eyes. _Lick hurts?_ His master replaced it with another Bellsprout.

"Vine whip."

"Lick!"

Smiley hovered up to the sluggish flower Pokémon, and licked its yellow head. The Bellsprout seemed frightened from the attack, and tried to back away from my new acquisition. _It didn't freeze up; maybe lick doesn't cause that all the time. _The flower-like creature seemed too scared to do as it master commanded, and Smiley licked it again. This time it caused it to remain motionless standing up. Smiley licked it several more times trying to knock it out, but it continued to stand. Suddenly, it whacked the ghost Pokémon upside its head with its leafy arm. _Ouch!_

"Keep it up, Smiley. You got this!" I shouted.

"Vine whip."

It seemed as if the Bellsprout was cured from its paralysis, and whipped Smiley once more. My Pokémon then disappeared and then reappeared behind its foe and licked it. This action knocked the Bellsprout out, and the sage returned it. _I hope that's his last!_

"Good battle, child. I am most impressed with your battle skills. You have bested me, the elder sage. I want to reward you with this," he said handing me a miniscule circular object.

Before I could ask what it was, he said: "That is H.M. number one, cut. You place it on your Pokémon and it strengthens the Pokémon's claws to be capable of clearing trees. It is a very powerful device, and I trust you will use it well," he explained.

"Thanks mister!" I said.

"You may call me Li. It was my privilege to face an opponent like you; I sense greatness from you. Farewell," he spoke in his calm voice. _I guess it's time to go._

"Thanks..." I replied. I made my way to the bottom floor, and Quimbly wasn't even there. I asked the man that greeted us, and he told me that she went back to the Poke Center after waiting for me for an hour. I looked down at my poke gear to discover it was twelve thirty. _Crap!_ I ran out of the tower to the Poke Center. I talked to the nurse briefly describing the damage done to my Pokémon so she could heal them properly. I asked her if she saw Quimbly at all, and she informed me that she was in her room.

I darted off to the apartment-like back of the Poke Center, and knocked on my companion's door. She answered the door, and didn't look the least bit peeved.

"Hey Blue! I was wondering when you were coming back. Are you hungry?" she said, greeting me. _I thought she might be a little upset with me; that's weird._

"Yeah!" I replied.

We walked over to a sandwich shop, and ate a couple of sandwiches. _This makes me miss Mom; she made awesome sandwiches._ I told her in great detail of my adventures in Sprout Tower, and I was eager to show her my new Pokémon. _Hopefully the nurse'll be done!_

"Wow! That sounds like a lot of fun, Blue. You're lucky; I was stuck with that weird bald guy. He kept going on how the tower was sacred ground, and how the Sprout Tower came about. Did you know that huge Bellsprout actually fended off rampaging Pokémon from this city? Well, actually it was more of a small town then, but it still happened. He explained to me that they built a tower around it to keep it alive in case they ever needed it again. He said that the Pokémon the giant Bellsprout fought are now spirits inside the tower, and they have to spend their days keeping them inside there," spoke Quimbly. _Oh my god! What an earful!_

"Huh. That's kinda interesting. I thought it was a bathhouse or something because all those guys were wearing robes. I guess that explains why they didn't want me up there..." I said, trailing off.

"Yeah, probably. I take it back, talking to that man was actually fun," she said, putting her hand on her chin.

We walked back to the Poke Center, and luckily they were all healed. The nurse seemed a little upset with me because she noticed that Jaws was hurt. She told me that I was incredibly lucky that he didn't open his wound, and that he won't be sore anymore from the second round in the P.H.D. I thanked her immensely, and we left the building. _Oh man! I'm so glad Jaws is okay!_

"Hey do you still have those T.M.s from Hughie?" asked Quim as we walked.

"Yeah! I keep forgetting to use those things! I should do it now!" I hollered.

I released my trio of Pokémon from their poke balls, and thought about what to do next with the T.M.s. Smiley floated around Quimbly scaring her, and she screamed.

"You caught a g-g-ghost?" she shrieked running away from it. Smiley thought this was funny and chased her.

"Yeah! Isn't he funny?" I said looking at the two T.M.s and H.M. in my hands. _Who will get what? I really need to use these; it might give me an edge in battle! _I looked up to see Quimbly running around in circles followed closely by Smiley while the rest of the Pokémon were watching. _Who knew she'd be afraid of ghosts?_

"Smiley, stop chasing Quimbly please," I ordered. Smiley stopped, faced me, and stuck out his tongue. He floated back to me and stayed.

"Good, Smiley!" I said petting him. My hand passed right through his head.

"Ack! I got to remember he's a ghost! That's so...freaky!" I screamed, jumping away from my Pokémon.

"Blue, I really don't like him. He freaks me out! And he tries to scare me!" shrieked Quimbly.

"Are you afraid of ghosts?" I asked making a scary face. _Cas would be cracking up._

"No! I...just don't like him! Could you put him up, please?" she asked kindly. _She's nicer than him; here's to hoping she won't kill my other parent._

"Sure, Quim," I responded zapping Smiley back to his poke ball. _I really like him! He's a lot different than Jaws and Berserk; I think that'll give me an edge!_

With my other Pokémon still out I chose to use my attack teaching technology on them. I looked on the backside of the two T.M.s, and found out that Bulk Up is a fighting type attack and Rock Slide is a rock type attack. I looked over to Jaws paling around with his once enemy Berserk. _Jaws could go for some buffing up._ I sent Berserk back to his poke ball because he seems like he might get jealous of Jaws for getting something.

"Hey Jaws come over here. I got somethin' for ya," I said to my totodile Pokémon. He stopped playing with Quimbly's Eevee and waddled over to me. I put away the H.M. and other T.M. in my pocket, and pressed the button on the Bulk Up technical machine. Like Hughie said, it grew to the size of a portable television, and a red light shot out. It scanned Jaws briefly, then the screen changed from black to 'Are you sure?' and a yes or no button underneath. I pressed yes, and the screen turned black once more. _Great! It's broken!_ I looked to Quimbly, who was now watching the process, and she gave me an assuring nod. _I guess this is normal then._ I looked back down to the screen and it displayed a video of a totodile performing the move. The creature looked like it was concentrating incredibly hard, then its muscles bulged to great size. _Whoa! It looks like a whole different creature now!_ Jaws watched the screen, and tried to mimic the video. He focused immensely, and then his muscles grew!

"Good job, Jaws! You're a real powerhouse!" I said happily, poking Jaws' big muscles. It took a lot out of Jaws to keep up Bulk Up, and he loosened up back to his former state.

_Now to the other items. _I pulled out the devices out of my pocket, and thought about how I was going to use them. I stared at the H.M. for a while; _It looks so different than a T.M. How does it work?_ I looked for a button on it, but found none. As I was searching, the H.M. slipped out of my hand and landed onto Jaws' back. _What a goof!_ As I was reaching down to pick up the device, it dug into Jaws' skin.

"Whoa!" I said backing away.

Next Jaws' claws grew longer and looked sharper than before, and his teeth, too! They were now hanging out of his mouth.

"So awesome!" I shouted. I picked up Jaws and inspected him further. I pulled out the H.M. out of his back and his teeth and claws slowly reverted back. _Not as cool._ I placed the H.M. back on to his back, and it buried itself into Jaws' skin once more. Jaws grew ecstatic about his new-found abilities. He snapped his jaws wildly. _I bet he's thinking the same thing as me; he's so much more powerful now. I really owe Sage Li!_

After that, I sent Jaws back to his poke ball to try out the last T.M. on one of my other Pokémon. I released Berserk and Smiley (to Quimbly's dismay) to see who was compatible with Rock Slide. I pressed the button on the brown Rock Slide T.M., and it scanned both of the potential candidates. When it scanned Smiley an error message came up on the screen and read 'Incompatible', and I returned Smiley back to his poke ball. Afterwards it scanned Berserk, and prompted me again to see if I was sure I wanted to use it. I chose yes, and a video displayed illustrating how to use Rock Slide. The video-mankey kicked a concrete wall and it tumbled over, so the downside is that there has to be rocks or cement nearby to use it. _That's still pretty useful, though._ I sent Berserk back to his poke ball, and Quimbly and I ate lunch.

Afterwards, we walked over to the Violet City Gym that was a few blocks away from where we last were. It was a gigantic glass building nearly as tall as Sprout Tower –_ I wonder if it's a giant glass Pokémon! That'd be so cool!_ A large sign read 'VIOLET CITY GYM' in bold, red print. _This is it. I'm on my way to becoming a champion!_ After psyching myself up, we stepped inside passing the automatic sliding doors. Then it hit me in full force, this place smells like crap. The room we were in was an expansive aviary with bird cages everywhere, birds fluttering around, bird crap on the floor, and huge bleachers surrounding an area.

"Hey you two! Come over here!" beckoned some shady looking guy in the corner of the room.

"Let's go see what the guy wants," I whispered to Quim. She didn't seem too keen on the idea, but I had faith in weirdo-s – Hughie helped us out a lot.

"Heya, mister!" I said greeting him. Quimbly stood behind me and remained quiet.

"Hey. You two new to gyms? Know anything about this one?" asked the man, who was wearing a fancy brown suit, brown hat, and bright red shades (_what a weird combination!)._

"Yeah! How did you know?" I replied

"I could just tell. I like watching kids battle in here. You know that Violet City Gym's specialty is flying type Pokémon, right?" he questioned, putting his hand on my shoulder.

"Nope, but I do now. Thanks, I'll see ya!" I said walking away from him. _That guy freaked me out, but I'm glad he told me this is a flying type gym._

We walked over to an elevator that was across the room from the weird-o. _I bet the gym leader is at the top. _

"Hey, you wanna fight Hawkeye Harvey?" asked a boy in a blue-jumpsuit blocking us from the elevator.

"Well, if he's the Gym Leader, then yeah," I replied slightly confused.

"Then we gotta battle. Sorry, dude!" he said leading us to this battle area in the middle of the room.

"This is a League-certified standard gym battle arena. We're battling to see if you're ready for Hawkeye. If you beat me, you can go up; otherwise, you'll wait till tomorrow, bro. Go to the other side, and your girlfriend can go watch in the bleachers, 'kay?" spoke the kid with haste.

"Uh," I replied. _Girlfriend?_

"Can I battle you after? I want to take on the gym leader, too!" asked Quimbly.

"Sure, sure. This shouldn't take long. This is a two-Pokemon battle. Pick your first one, and let's get this started!" shouted the kid with long, blond hair. _Hmm. I think I'm going to use Smiley and Berserk. I might need Jaws later, so best to save him. _

"Good luck, B! I'll cheer ya on from the bleachers!" said Quimbly.

"Go Smiley!" I shouted throwing the poke ball into the center of the arena.

"Go Pidgey!" shouted my opponent throwing his poke ball.

A brown bird pokemon appeared, and took to the air. _I've fought these before. They can be kinda tough_. Smiley hovered a little off the ground watching his foe.

"Use Curse!" I shouted. _I had a chance to check out Smiley's moves before this – Thank Arceus!_

"Gust!" yelled my opponent.

Smiley disappeared, and then reappeared in front of the flying Pidgey rapidly all around it. Then he phased through it. _I have no clue what's going on._ Smiley then vanished back to the ground. He looked a tired from the attack; as if it sapped life from him. He was panting heavily as the Pidgey looked healthy as ever, but a maybe a little spooked. The bird Pokémon flapped its wings and a strong gust of wind struck Smiley; he was pushed into the floor. He hovered back up, but was looking worse than ever.

"Lick Smiley!"

"Tackle!"

Pidgey flew down upon Smiley before he could react, yet the bird flew right threw him, crashing into the ground. My ghost Pokémon approached the Pidgey and licked it with its red tongue. The attack for whatever reason didn't phase it. _Not good!_

"Gust again!"

Pidgey flew up in the air and produced another gust of wind aimed at Smiley. Smiley couldn't dodge it in time, and took the wind blast. He fell over and was knocked out. I returned him to his poke ball. _This is not looking good! It's all up to Berserk!_

"Go Berserk! It's up to you!" I shouted throwing my second poke ball.

Seconds after Berserk was released from his poke ball, something absolutely strange happened. The Pidgey fell out of the sky for no apparent reason, and was knocked out. His owner returned him, and threw out his second Pokemon. _Sudden streak of luck?_

"Smart move with Curse, kid-o!" shouted the creepy man I met earlier from the bleachers. _Is it bad that I still don't know what's going on?_ I looked over and half-smiled at the man.

"Keep it up, Blue!" shrieked Quimbly sitting far away from the man in brown suit. I waved at her, and then returned my attention to the battle. _Focus, Blue!_

"Spearow, Fury Attack!" ordered my opponent. I focused back to the battle, and hastily thought of my battle plan. _This red bird looks stronger than Pidgeys. I don't have time to scan it; I hope it doesn't have some crazy awesome attack I don't know about._

"Dodge! Then use Rock Slide!"

My monkey Pokémon barely escaped his foe's attack by quickly evading the Spearow's beak. He then jumped up tremendously high, and kicked the ceiling. A chunk of it fell down terribly fast and landed right on the unsuspecting Spearow – It was too busy chasing Berserk a couple of seconds after he jumped up to notice what Berserk did. It was painful to watch the red bird crash to the ground with the chunk of ceiling on top of it. _I hope I didn't kill it. _I heard a couple of gasps. Quimbly had her hands covering her mouth.

"Spearow!" cried my opponent. He ran over to his downed pokemon, and removed the ceiling chunk of it. He returned it back to its poke ball, and ran over my way. _Ah, crap! I hope he doesn't try to kill me or something._

"Hey!" said the blond haired guy.

"Sorry about that. I didn't-"

"Oh don't worry. I've had Spearow for years; she's been through a lot worse. Don't worry about it. I was just going to tell you great game. You've got serious talent. Go on ahead to the next floor," he said handing me a wad of cash. _This is unexpected, but very nice!_ Quimbly ran over and prepped for her battle with the bird trainer.

"Good battle, Blue! Good luck upstairs!" she said, hugging me. _Ugh! Why does she always do that?_

"Thanks! You'll do great! I'll see ya when I'm done beating the next fool!" I said slipping out of the hug.

As I made my way to the elevator, I was stopped by the creepy man from earlier.

"Hey! You did great out there! Do you mind if I come up with you to watch your next match?" he asked reaching out for a handshake. I obliged him and shook his hand.

"Sure, I guess mister," I said escaping the squeeze of his sweaty hand.

"You can call me Walter. I didn't catch your name," he replied.

"I'm Blue," I said as we were ascending in the glass elevator.

Walter kept asking me questions during the short elevator ride, but I didn't tell him too much because I was thinking about who I might have to fight next. _Smiley is definitely out; it's only Berserk and Jaws._ When the elevator doors opened there was another guy in a blue-jumpsuit except he had wild black hair that was a complete mess. _I haven't looked at my hair in a while._ Walter walked over to the stands on this floor while I talked to this fellow.

"Hey guy! You beat Jim?" asking the stranger.

"The bird trainer guy below?" I asked

"Yeah, the very one," he replied.

"Yeah, I think I might have over done it on his Spearow, though..." I said trailing off.

"Hey don't worry about it! That's the risk we take as trainers for a gym. I'm no push-over like Jim, so get ready. How's two-Pokemon sound?" said my new opponent.

"Thanks. Yeah that sounds fine," I responded.

"My name is Zeke, nice to meet ya. Let's do this thing!" he said smiling, and shaking my hand.

"I'm Blue. I'm so ready to kick your crap!" I replied psyching myself up. He walked to the other side of the arena and looked a little confused – It was set up like the floor below.

"Go Berserk!" I said pitching the poke ball to the center of the area.

"Zubat! Whip this monkey's butt!" shouted my opponent.

He released a blue bat Pokémon with purple wings and ears. I took out my pokedex to learn more about this new Pokémon; "ZUBAT, BAT POKEMON. CAPABLE OF FLYING SAFELY IN DARK PLACES, IT EMITS ULTRASONIC CRIES TO CHECK FOR ANY OBSTACLES." _It doesn't have eyes! That's crazy!_

"Zubat suck it dry – Use Leech Life!"

The flying bat dove to Berserk and sunk its fangs into Berserk's head. It looked like it was sucking his blood or something, but Berserk quickly knocked off the bat with strong karate chops. The attack didn't seem to hurt Berserk much, except he had two red spots near his pointy left ear. _That's a gross attack! Pretty brutal! _The bat was flying around, yet it looked like Berserk laid down a serious beating on him. It was flying unsteadily. _Berserk totally has the speed on it. Let's bring it down!_

"Karate Chop its left wing, Berserk!" I commanded.

"Dodge it Zu!" shouted Zeke.

Berserk screeched, and leaped towards his enemy. _Someone sounds mad!_ Zubat flew up narrowly avoiding Berserks' attack. Berserk was getting frustrated, and made another leap at his foe without me saying so.

"Supersonic!" ordered Zeke

Zubat barely dodged the mankey again, but let out a horrible high-pitched screech afterwards. _Ow! That is killing my ears!_ This stopped Berserk in his tracks. It looked like the shriek affected him much more than me; he seemed disorientated. His steps were uneven causing him to lose his balance.

"Berserk, can you hear me?" I shouted.

Berserk struggled to walk around, and unable to hear me.

"Zubat, bite it hard, and then leech life to get your strength back!" commanded Zeke. _Crap! Berserk is out of luck!_

"Dodge, Berserk!" I yelled with all my might.

Unfortunately, my words did not reach Berserk. The Zubat swooped down and bit Berserk on his back. Then it drew closer and started bobbing its head. _It's sucking Berserk's blood!_ It released its bite on Berserk and flew up. Berserk seemed less disorientated than before, but weaker than ever. He slowly turned around to see the bat with blood dripping down its fangs. Berserk let out a terrifying roar and made another try at hitting his opponent. Zubat seemed faster than it was before; as if it was healed, and dodged his attack with ease. It flew in and bit Berserk as he was landing; the mankey was unable to dodge the attack. The bat didn't suck his blood this time, but the bite seemed painful enough. He slumped over on the ground in a bloody mess; his fur was matted with blood. _Man! I hope he's okay!_ I sent him back to his poke ball, and sent in Jaws.

"Jaws! It's all on you! I know you can do this!" I shouted after the flash of red light. Jaws looked over his shoulder and nodded at me. _We have to do this. _

"Zubat, bite it!" yelled Zeke.

"Jaws, shoot it out of the sky!"

Jaws blasted the Zubat oncoming back with a blast of water gun. _He's getting really good at understanding me!_ Zubat shook his head and flapped its wings to get the water off. _Now's Jaws' chance!_

"Jaws, bite that sucker!"

My blue crocodile pokemon dashed over to its foe, jumped up, and clamped down on the bat's left wing. He swung it down the ground, and it crashed with terrifying speed. _So awesome!_

"End this Jaws! Scratch!"

Jaws landed back to the ground and ran over to the blue bat and scratched it with his sharp claws. Blood splashed as Jaws attacked his foe. Zeke returned his Pokémon and sent out a Pidgey-looking Pokémon that was twice the normal size. It had a red crest on its forehead, too. _That can't be a Pidgey!_

"Pidgeotto, Whirlwind that fiend!" barked Zeke.

"Jaws Water Gun!" I shouted back.

The Pidgeotto flapped its wings with incredible speed, and caused a powerful gust of wind crashing against me and Jaws. I had a hard time resisting the wind to see what was going on. After the wind passed, I looked up to see a trail of water across the room and a dry three foot bird Pokémon. _Crap! He missed! Where is he?_ I didn't spot him on the battlefield until I saw him run past me into the arena. _That really pushed him back!_

"Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto sped off towards the totodile, and tackled him before either one of us could react. _That's why they call it quick attack!_

"Bite it now!"

Jaws tried to chomp down onto his enemy, but it nimbly dodged the attack. It flew back up into the air out of his biting reach.

"Rage, Berserk!"

"Quick Attack!"

Pidgeotto landed another blow on Jaws, but when it did Jaws roared and scratched its wing. The Pidgeotto tried to escape back into the air, but its wing was too damaged to fly. He was on the ground, same as Jaws.

"Tackle, Pidgeotto!"

The bird Pokémon leaped and tackled into Jaws. Jaws roared again, and made another wild scratch attack. The Pidgeotto attempted to jump back to dodge the attack, but it connected on the bird's beige chest. It cried out in pain, and swayed over falling onto the ground.

"Jaws! You really did it! That was awesome!" I yelled running over to it. I picked him up, petting him. _He is incredible!_

"Blue you're quite the strategist! Using Rage to build up the attack after getting hit – Genius!" _That's what Rage does? Awesome!_

"Oh it was nothing. I knew your Pidgeotto would be really fast – That's a Pidgey right?" I responded.

"Nah, that's an evolved Pidgey. They're faster and stronger than a Pidgey," explained Zeke.

"Oh, that's cool!" I replied.

"Alright. So do you think you'll be ready for Hawkeye in several days? How about next Tuesday?" asked Zeke pulling out a clipboard. _What day is it?_ I looked to my poke gear and pressed the clock in hopes of a more detailed display. It displayed a calendar saying July 12th Friday. _Five days from now? That'll be plenty of time to be ready. These guys were close battles both times; I need to be better prepared!_

"Yeah, I think so. Why do I have to wait?" I replied.

"It's so you'll have time to rest and train your Pokémon from the battles from us, the gym trainers. Be ready for the gym leader battle; they're a lot tougher than you think," explained the bird trainer.

"Oh, that makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up. I think that'll be a good time for a battle," I replied shrugging my shoulders.

"Great! I pencil you in for Tuesday at three P.M. Ride the elevator to the roof, and you'll battle Hawkeye there okay?"

"Okay. I'll see you then!" I said thanking him for the battle. He then handed me cash for winning. _I love winning!_ I turned around hoping to see Quimbly, but only to see the weirdo Walter.

"Blue! What a battle! You're quite the trainer. When is your gym leader battle?" blurted out the strange man.

"Uhh...next Tuesday at three," I answered hesitantly.

He followed me to the elevator and rode down with me to the bottom floor asking me a bunch of annoying questions again. I didn't give him clear answers, and he didn't even give me a chance to ask him any. _Man, he is annoying!_ When we got the bottom floor I saw Tim sitting down in the bleachers writing on a clipboard.

"Hey Tim, right?" I said greeting the defeated trainer.

"No, Jim! That was a good battle. Your friend didn't do too good, though. She left, like, ten minutes ago," said the blond bird trainer still jotting down stuff on his clipboard.

"Sorry! Any idea where she went?" I asked.

"Nope, but I'd guess Poke Center. I beat her Pokémon up pretty bad," he replied.

"Really? With what? I took out two of your Pokémon," I said confused.

"Oh yeah, I have a bunch of flying Pokémon. I try to train them by taking on newcomers like yourself," explained Jim.

I sped off to the Poke Center and told Walter to stop following me. He said he was going to go back home anyways, and left me. I got to the Poke Center and gave the Nurse Bliss doppelganger my poke balls. She told me that all my Pokémon were hurt pretty bad, and it might take a while to heal them all, especially my mankey. I thanked her and asked if she'd seen Quimbly. She informed me that my friend was in the trainer sleeping quarters.

I ran over to her room, and knocked on the door. Quimbly answered the door in pale pink pajamas and her eyes were puff and red.

"Quim...you alright?" I asked. _I should have waited for her. I could've given her battle advice or something._

"Yeah. I'm just sad that I couldn't beat that jerk, Jim. He beat Ledyba without sweating, and I only beat one of his Pokémon with Eevee!" exclaimed Quimbly.

"It's okay. You can't win them all," I said trying to ease her.

"Ha. That's some great line, Blue. Did you get that from a self-help poster?" she said breaking into a smile.

"Shuddap!" I replied.

"It's okay. I think I'll try tomorrow or something," she said, giggling.

"Hey why don't you come with me to train tomorrow? I'm going to go south of here; maybe you can catch a new Pokémon to help you out?" I said encouragingly.

"Good idea, Blue!" she said, hugging me.

"Hey. You're welcome and all that. Stop hugging me now. I'm going to ask the nurse at the front if she has any food – I'm starving!" I said squirming in her hug-grasp.

"Oh. I hadn't eaten either; let's go," she said releasing me.

We walked together to the nurse talking about our battles in detail. _Quimbly's downfall is that none of her Pokémon have projectile attacks_; I thought as we walked. The nurse said she had nothing for us, so I went out to a nearby store and bought a couple of sandwiches and drinks. We ate them in her room and talked a bit more. Afterwards, I retreated back to my room and got ready for bed. I closed my eyes ready for the sleep of a lifetime – _It's been such a crazy long day!_

**Knock, knock, knock.**__


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: The Zephyr Badge**

"No, no, no! Quimbly, you're doing it all wrong!" I shouted. Jaws easily dodged Ledyba's Comet Punch because she ordered it early.

"What did I do?" she shouted back, looking confused.

"You're supposed to say your attacks at the right time – like when they're actually close to their target!" I explained. Ledyba and Jaws stood around awaiting for their trainers to continue to tell them what to do.

"Right! Can I have redo?" she asked, shrugging her shoulders.

"Jaws try using Cut!" I ordered.

"Ledyba evade and Comet Punch Jaws!" commanded Quim.

Jaws ran to his sparring partner and swiped his claw at the bug Pokemon Ledyba evaded the attack narrowly, and punched Jaws many times with her many arms. _That was pretty good!_

"Alright Jaws, use Water Gun!" I ordered, still trying to take it easy on Quim.

"Ledyba use Light Screen!" Quimbly yelled.

_Light Screen?_ Ledyba produced a pink see-through barrier shielding it from the blunt of the water attack. _Defensive moves? That's pretty handy!_

"Ledyba Mach Punch!" barked Quim.

"Jaws bite it!" I commanded.

Ledyba sped over to Jaws with amazing speed with one arm cocked back, and delivered a punch right on Jaws snout. It wasn't powerful enough to knock the totodile over, but Jaws instinctively held his snout and whimpered.

"Alright, that's enough practice for now. You're really getting better, Quim! You really had Jaws with the Light Screen to Mach Punch strategy – Very nice!" I said zapping my Pokemon with its poke ball.

"Thanks B! That means a lot! Do you think I'll be able to take on those gym bird trainer guys?" she asked returning her Pokemon as well.

"Not yet, you need to catch another Pokemon; maybe something that's good against flying Pokemon," I said letting out a yawn. _It's a total drag to wake up at seven, and walk around for thirty minutes. At least we get to do a little battling! Hopefully I'll see some new Pokemon or something._

"Good point. If I remember correctly, I think electric, rock, and ice Pokemon are strong against flying," recited Quimbly.

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot all that stuff – Good memory!" I replied.

We walked around the meadows of Route 32 for wild Pokemon suitable for Quimbly. There was some cool ones I hadn't seen before like a purple snake Pokemon, but Quim didn't give me a chance to catch it – I was supposed to be helping her, not catching Pokemon. She also made me avoid trainers as well; I think she didn't want to get embarrassed again. It was boring as hell not being able to fight anything, and I was getting hungry again. _I don't know how much more of Quimbly training I can stand1 Ugh!_

"Hey Quim. I'm getting real hungry-"

"Shh! Do you see that yellow sheep Pokemon over there?" she whispered, cutting me off.

"Yeah, you gonna catch it?" I asked. Quim glared at me.

"Shh! Scan it real quick with your pokedex, please!" Quimbly whispering still.

"Yeah, I can do that," I replied. _Why doesn't she have one of these?_

"MAREEP, WOOL POKEMON. ITS FLEECE GROWS CONTINUOUSLY. IN THE SUMMER, THE FLEECE IS FULLY SHED, BUT IT GROWS BACK IN A WEEK," spoke my monotone Pokemon encyclopedia device. _Meh, sounds kinda girly. Not for me._

"Hey! It's electric type!" I spoke loudly.

"Blue! Shh! I don't want it to run away! That's great, I'm going for it! Is it alright if I use one of your poke balls?" she said softly.

I handed her one of my empty poke balls from my backpack, and Quimbly approached the still unaware sheep Pokemon while it was chewing on a mouthful of grass. _I thought she bought some poke balls back in Cherrygrove? She'll buy me another one; no bigs._ She sent out her Eevee to fight it, but the wild Pokemon seemed like it didn't want to fight. It stepped backwards away from Eevee, and suddenly turned around hightailing from its captor.

"Eevee use Quick Attack!" ordered the red head.

Eevee caught up to the fleeing electric Pokemon and tackled it on its side. The wild mareep tumbled over from the attack and remained on the ground. _This little sheep isn't putting up much fight. _ Quimbly tossed the poke ball at the mareep, and it was teleported inside. The ball didn't budge at all, and Quimbly walked over to pick up her new Pokemon

"I did it Blue!" shrieked Quimbly.

"Yeah! That looked really easy! Good job!" I replied. _Something is up with that mareep. Why did it give up so easily? It's probably just a wimp._

"Hey do you think we could practice some more? I want to test out my Mareep; I don't think its hurt," asked Quimbly.

"Yeah, but I have a question for you. It's been bugging me for a while, actually. Why do you call your Pokemon by their names like Mareep?" I asked furrowing my eyebrows.

"Oh I don't know, Blue. That's how my family does it and most trainers as well, I think," she answered.

"That's so boring! Mine are automatically cooler with their original names!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, I guess..." she said frowning slightly.

"Alright let's do some more battling! Is it alright if I use Smiley? I know you don't like him, but he needs more training," I said taking Smiley's poke ball from my belt.

"I suppose, just don't let him scare me please!"she said looking a little worried.

We released both of our Pokemon. Quimbly's new Mareep still looked frightened, and Smiley stuck out his tongue at Quim. _He really likes scaring her!_ She tried to ignore Smiley meanwhile I thought about Smiley's attacks.

"Try Night Shade!" I said to my ghost Pokemon.

"Tackle!" shouted my friend..

_Rookie mistake! _I thought expecting Mareep to tackle through Smiley falling on to the ground. Instead Mareep did not move an inch quivering in fear. Smiley created a dark aura around himself, and then it appeared around Mareep. The sheep Pokemon winced in pain.

"Mareep! Listen to me! Try tackle again!" ordered Quim. _She looks frustrated._

"Smiley use a good ole Lick!" _I hope that'll get Mareep going. It's a weak move, so I don't think it'll hurt as bad as Night Shade – which is awesome!_

Mareep remained still, and timid. Smiley hovered towards his foe, and extended his enormous, red tongue. Just as he was about to give the fleece Pokemon a lick a light came out of no where and shocked his tongue. Smiley moaned in pain. _I wouldn't like that either!_

"Mareep use that Thundershock attack again! You got it on the run!" she ordered grinning. _Looks like someone likes hurting my ghastly!_

"Smiley use another Lick!" I told my ghost Pokemon

Smiley still had his tongue sticking out with a black mark towards the tip of it. He did not look like a happy ghost. He floated towards his enemy in a rush. Mareep stood strong, this time with confidence, as if he was eager to zap my Pokemon Mareep released a tiny lightning stream of electricity at Smiley, and hit him dead on. The lightning attack ran through Smiley's entire body in a mater of seconds, and he howled in pain. _Whoa! Quimbly beat me! _

"That's enough! You won, okay?" I shouted, getting a little frustrated.

"I can't believe I just beat you, Blue! That was unbelievable! I surely thought Mareep was just going to take the beating, and Smiley would win without taking a hit," she spoke running over to her victorious Pokemon. She hugged it, and quickly released. Her hair became frizzy, sticking out all over the place.

"It just shocked me!" she shouted, glaring at her Pokemon

"I think the pokedex said its wool makes the electricity!" I muttered out in between laughs. _God, that was worth it!_

We walked back into town due to hunger, and dropped off our battle weary Pokemon The nurse informed me that Berserk is still recovering, and it looks like I won't get him back for a couple more days. _I can't believe how hurt he got; I feel so bad. I shouldn't have let him take on that Zubat. I definitely don't want him taking on any more flying Pokemon unless it's absolutely necessary. _We went out for lunch, and Quim opted for taking on the Violet City Gym afterward.

After picking up our poke balls, we headed over to the glass tower gym. _I wonder what Hawkeye Hank is all about. I'm super excited to fight him; only four more days!_ As we walked through the sliding glass doors, I was anticipating the annoying approach of the creeper, Walter. Fortunately he wasn't there today, and I headed to the bleachers to watch Quimbly take on Tim again. _Or was it Jim? I'm so glad Walter's not here! I thought he said he liked watching battles, though..._

I have a better view of the arena; it's a cool design. The center is a circle colored like a poke ball! Quimbly stationed herself on the left side of the arena, while her opponent was on the opposite. Quimbly started with her new Mareep, and Tim chose Spearow. _I wonder if that's the same one I beat up yesterday; that one was in really bad shape. _

"Mareep Thundershock attack!" ordered Quim.

"Spearow use Peck!" commanded her opponent.

The Spearow flew towards her target with her yellow beak primed, but the sheep Pokemon's lightning attack hit before contact. The red bird screeched in pain and dropped from the air. It crashed upon the arena floor, feathers burnt and smoking; it was done. _ONE HIT K.O?_

"You're dominating, Quim! Keep it up!" I shouted with my hands cupped around my mouth. Quim turned to me, and I gave her a thumbs up.

The bird trainer's next choice for the battle came to me as a surprise; it was a bird Pokemon I hadn't seen before. It was covered with dark blue feathers except its white underside and red surrounding its chest and forehead. Its wings seemed longer and pointed at the tips compared to the other bird Pokemon I've seen. I took out my pokedex to learn more; "TAILOW, TINY SWALLOW POKEMON. WHEN IT GETS COLD, THEY MIGRATE, FLYING OVER 180 MILES A DAY. IT HUNTS FOR TASTY PREY."

"Tailow, show no mercy! Quick Attack!" shouted Jim. _I'm pretty sure it's Jim now. I think I heard someone say his name._

"Mareep use Thundershock again!" ordered Quim.

Before Quim even finished her sentence the Tailow flew to his foe with great speed, and clawed Mareep on his back. Then the Tailow fell to the ground after attacking, and convulsed. _Mareep's wool paralyzed it! What an awesome defensive ability!_ Mareep shocked her downed enemy, and finished the match. _That was faster than my battle! Dang!_

"Quim! You were fantastic! Mareep is awesome!" I exclaimed after descending from the bleachers.

"Thanks! I'm so glad I decided to come and do this again; I got so much cash for winning!" replied Quimbly.

"Alright, cool. Let's move on up! See ya Tim!" I said waving to the defeated trainer.

"You remembered my name!" he mumbled as we walked to the elevator.

"I know you're probably thinking that last guy was a breeze now after training with me this morning, but this next guy is pretty tough. Be careful," I informed her as we rode the elevator.

"I figured so, but thanks for the advice. I'm determined to win; I really want to get my first gym badge!" replied Quim.

We reached the next floor and a mob of people were slipping pass us to reach the elevator. "Lars has no chance beating Hawkeye – Let's go see him lose!" shouted one of the more raucous strangers. _Gym leader battle? I gotta see this!_

"Hey Quim! Is it cool if I tag along with these guys to see the match?" I asked, disarming her with my sweet smile.

"Blue, I could really use your support," she replied fiddling with her hat.

"Alright, I'll watch you," I said, sighing deeply. _I really wanted to see what I was up against!_

Quimbly greeted Zeke, and I stationed myself up in the stands once more. They parted and started the battle. Quimbly chose her Eevee, and the bird trainer chose a Pidgey. _Is he taking it easy on her? He doesn't even know Quim!_ Both trainers ordered their Pokemon to Quick Attack; Eevee was faster and landed the first blow. _Eevee's really shaping up well! I wonder what it'll evolve into..._

"Eevee fake it out, Double Team!" ordered Quim

"Tackle it!" shouted Zeke.

Eevee created three copies of itself, and surrounded its foe. _That is such a cool move!_ The Pidgey hesitated on attacking; unsure of what to do next. After a few quick seconds the Pidgey tackled the Eevee facing it, and landed into the ground. The three other Eevees moved in closer around the confused bird.

"Now tackle it!" shouted Quim. _She looks excited. I can't blame her; it's a great strategy!_

The trio of Eevees charged the hovering Pidgey, and the one behind it tackled it into the ground. The duplicate Eevees disappeared, and the real Eevee stood triumphant. The brown bird Pokemon was knocked out. _That was a great fight!_

"Go Pidgeotto!" yelled Zeke. _Uh-oh! This Pokemon is super strong!_

"This one's tough! Be careful!" I shouted.

"Use Sand Attack!" she ordered.

The Eevee kicked up dust from the floor into his enemy's face. The red-crested bird seemed dazed from the attack, and landed on the ground to try to clear its eyes.

"Tackle, now!" yelled Quim.

Eevee dashed over to his opponent, and tackled it hard with his shoulder, pushing the Pidgeotto back. _Yikes! That didn't do much._ The Pidgeotto seemed upset, and smacked the small mammal Pokemon with its wing. Eevee skidded backwards from the attack.

"Eevee Double Team!" she ordered.

"Quick Attack!" shouted her opponent.

_He wised up. Too bad for Quim._ Pidgeotto flew to his foe with terrifying speed, and attacked with its talons. Eevee didn't perform his attack in time. Its back was bleeding from the attack; however, he stood back up willing to fight. _Dang! Wasn't expecting that!_

"Eevee hang in there! You can do this! Try using Tail Whip when it attacks," Quim ordered looking nervous.

"Quick Attack!" shouted Zeke.

The bird Pokemon sped to its enemy once more, and Eevee defended itself by whacking the bird with its fluffy, brown tail. Pidgeotto was dazed by the attack, but wasn't hurt.

"Tackle!" shouted Quim.

Eevee charged the bird Pokemon that was directly in front of it. Pidgeotto didn't react in time to dodge or retaliate, and slid back a little on the arena floor. It was looking tired, but not nearly as tired as Quim's Eevee.

"Gust!" ordered the bird trainer.

Pidgeotto took to the air again, and flapped its wings with great speed. It created a strong wind knocking Eevee into the bleachers. _Dang! Eevee is incredibly light or Pidgeotto is incredibly strong!_ Quimbly returned her Pokemon and sent out Mareep.

"Mareep! Hang in there! All you need to do is Thundershock it once, and it's over!" shouted Quim. _She looks like she's on the verge of tears. I really hope she wins this; I hate to see her cry._

"Pidgeotto use Quick Attack" yelled Zeke. _Wow, he looks confident that he can take on an electric Pokemon! _

Pidgeotto rushed over to the hapless sheep Pokemon, and hit it hard with its talons. Mareep tumbled over on his side, and struggled to get back up. Before Mareep stood up, a small stream of electricity shot out of its wool. The bird Pokemon wasn't expecting this, and was zapped. It fell to the ground, and didn't get back up. It looked fried like the birds from downstairs. I ran down the bleachers screaming good job**. **_I'm shocked she pulled that one off. It was a close battle, and fun to watch!_

"Thanks, Blue! I'm so glad you stuck around and watched! It means a lot to me!" cried Quim. She hugged me tightly. _Ugh!_

"You're welcome. It was actually kind of fun to watch!" I replied.

"Hey you know what? If the gym leader battle is still going on let's check it out," she said letting go.

"Really? Let's hurry!" I shouted.

Quimbly collected her winnings, and signed up for a match next Wednesday. We ran to the elevator, and went to the highest floor.

"Ah man! I can't believe how quick Hawkeye beat that loser! That was awesome! It was like a minute long battle!" spoke one of the onlookers. _Crap!_ We couldn't pass through the mass of people going to the elevators, and followed suit.

After exiting the gym, Quimbly headed to the Poke Center to heal her Pokemon, and I went to go train some more on Route 32. The hours flew by, and before I knew it was dark. I went back into town, met up with Quim, ate together, and then we called it a night. _I have two more days of training! Tuesday can't come any faster._

* * *

"And the crowd goes wild! Pokemon trainer Blue Slade has done it folks; he is now Pokemon Champion!" spoke the announcer in a booming voice. _Yeah! I'm the best! Jaws tore everyone up!_ Jaws stood a few feet away from me jumping for joy after defeating his opponent.

"Blue! Hey Blue! You got to wake up! You're going to be late!"

I opened my eyes, and saw Quim nudging my shoulder. _What?_

"Huh?" I mumbled.

"Why did you think taking a nap was a good idea? You've been asleep for three hours! It's two fifty right now; we got to run!" shouted Quim, now hitting me on the shoulder.

"Oh crap!" I shouted, leaping out of the bed. I pulled on some pants, grabbed my backpack, and left my room. I jolted over to the Poke Center nurse and picked up my battle companions. I ran as fast as I could to the Violet City Gym with Quim shortly behind me. We stepped inside, and I was noticed by none other than Walter.

"Blue! There you are; you're going to be late. Shall we take the elevator together?" spoke Walter fiddling with his red shades.

"Not now Walter! I gotta run!" I said, running past him.

"I guess I'll see you up there!" he shouted as we boarded the elevator.

When we reached the roof we were amazed to see the huge crowd of people here to see the match. _Are they here to see me?_

"Hey, I gotta get this thing going Quim. I'll see ya later," I spoke squeezing through people to get to the arena.

"Alright! Good luck, B! I'll cheer you on from up there," she replied encouragingly pointing behind us to a massive balcony above the elevator.

"I'll give you a battle you won't forget!" I said smirking.

I finally made it through the mass of people to the battlefield only to see no one was there. _What the heck? Where is Hawkeye?_

"You made it! I thought my challenger wasn't going to show up!" said a fifty maybe sixty year old man riding a terrifying flying gray dinosaur Pokemon. _What is that? _The Pokemon swooped down to the roof, and the man hopped to the ground. He zapped his Pokemon back to his poke ball.

"I'm r-ready!" I mumbled.

"Ah! Before we start, I must ask. Is this your first Gym battle?" asked the man donning a blue blazer, slacks, and a monocle. His slicked back white hair was swaying in the wind. _I'm scared._

"Yeah, it is," I replied big-eyed.

"Great! I love fighting beginners; makes me think of my youth. What is your name, child?" asked the regal gym leader.

"I'm Blue Slade, but I'm no push-over!" I shouted regaining my confidence.

"Ah! There's the fighting spirit! Reminds me of young men I fought with in the Century War! I am Hank Thames or Hawkeye," he said taking out his pipe to chuckle.

"You're a hundred years old?" I said, gasping.

"No you, twit! I fought in a conflict - never-mind! This being your first battle against a gym leader; to win you must defeat all six Pokemon I have on me. This will be a testament to your Pokemon's stamina and your cunning. I wish you the best of luck!" he exclaimed tossing out his first poke ball. _Ah man! I wish I would've known this! I would've caught more Pokemon!_

"Go Berserk!" I shouted tossing my poke ball in. _He's not too great against these flying types, but maybe he can take out wimpier ones. _

The crowd roared with excitement._ I'm so ready to take this ancient guy down!_ His first Pokemon was something I was familiar with from my battles from the battles in this gym, Pidgey. _Berserk can whoop this little birdie no problem!_

"Pidgey, Tackle!" ordered my opponent exhaling smoke.

"It's all yours Berserk! Rock Slide the ground when the Pidgey gets close!" I shouted.

The airborne Pidgey flew towards my mankey primed for tackling. Berserk kicked down with all his might on the roof's floor causing it to shoot up shielding him from the Pidgey's attack. The Pidgey couldn't stop in time, and flew directly into the chunk of roof. The brown bird Pokemon was knocked out cold from the attack and fell to the ground. The crowd went nuts; _they want me to win! _Hawkeye returned his Pokemon and sent out his next bird. It was a small gray and white bird that was new to me. Instinctively, I took out my pokedex to scan it. "STARLY, STARLING POKEMON. THEY FLOCK AROUND MOUNTAINS AND FIELDS, CHASING AFTER BUG POKEMON. THEIR SINGING IS NOISY AND ANNOYING," spoke the pokedex.

"Starly, quick, Wing Attack!" commanded the gym leader.

"Berserk dodge and Scratch!" I shouted.

The small bird Pokemon sped off to Berserk and whacked him upside his head before he could even react. Despite getting slapped with the bird's small, powerful wings, Berserk, frenzied, tried to scratch his enemy with his monkey paws, but to no avail, the bird was too quick and out of reach. _That looks like it hurt more than I thought! Berserk can't touch it! His only chance is to dodge the bird's attacks!_

"Berserk! Focus on dodging!" I ordered.

"Starly Double Team!" spoke Hawkeye exhaling a puff of smoke. _Ack! Berserk doesn't have a chance of hitting Starly now! I need to tire it out!_

The Starly created duplicates of itself flying in the sky. Berserk seemed confused by its foe's new tactic. He stood still awaiting the bird's next move.

"Starly V-formation! Then Wing Attack!" ordered Hawkeye.

The Starlys formed a flying 'V' in the air, performed a loopy-loop, and charged Berserk.

"Don't attack! Dodge!" I yelled. _I really hope he listens to me!_ I thought biting my lip.

The oncoming Starlys were coming in fast on Berserk, and he began backwards somersaulting to avoid them all together. _He really listened to me! _The Starlys attempted to perform the Wing Attack, but missed altogether. It turned out that the back right Starly was the real one as the rest of the duplicates disappeared. _Arceus, that was close!_

"Jump on it and Fury Swipe it!" I bellowed. _This is it! It's over for Starly!_

The Starly, still in the air, was panting from performing the taxing maneuver. Berserk leaped up into the air, and tackled the bird to the ground. He swiped it mercilessly while it was in his grasp, and howled with rage. _I don't blame you Berserk; that Starly was a hard one to get!_

"Impressive! Beating two flying Pokemon with a fighting type; what a feat!" exclaimed Hawkeye.

"Now it is time to turn it up a notch; go Farfetch'd!" he continued tossing another poke ball into the arena. The red light disappeared revealing a duck Pokemon carrying something. I took out my pokedex again to scan it; "FARFETCH'D, WILD DUCK POKEMON. IF IT EATS THE PLANT STALK IT CARRIES AS EMERGENCY RATIONS, IT RUNS OFF IN SEARCH OF A NEW STALK," spoke my Pokemon encyclopedia.

"Don't give it a chance, Berserk! Karate Chop it!" I ordered.

Berserk dashed off to face his opponent, but was looking worn from the previous fights. He leaped over the small hole he created, and came down upon the duck Pokemon with his left arm cocked behind his right shoulder – like a ninja!

"Quack! Quack!"

The Farfetch'd naturally deflected the blow with his green plant stalk, and whacked Berserk with it. Berserk jumped back from his opponent, sizing it up. _It's quicker than I expected. _

"Berserk use Fury Swipes!" I yelled.

"Aerial Ace," commanded Hawkeye calmly.

Both Pokemon ran and leaped at each other. When they met in the air, Farfetch'd and Berserk both hit each other and landed to the ground. A second later Berserk slumped over, and Farfetch'd appeared unharmed.

"Get up, Berserk! You got this!" I yelled.

Berserk struggled to stand up, but ended up falling over with his chest up revealing an 'x' shaped cut.

"No Berserk!" I shouted in despair. I returned him to his poke ball, and sent out Jaws. _I don't think Smiley is effective to those normal type Pokemon for whatever reason; he couldn't even touch Eevee. _Jaws was looking mighty formidable from the several days of training; I can't let him sit up on my shoulder anymore - He's getting too heavy!

"Jaws Cut!" I yelled.

"Block and Slash!" ordered Hawkeye.

Jaws ran to his foe and slashed with his sharp, long claws. Farfetch'd blocked with his plant stem, but it was cut in half. The duck Pokemon threw his weapon to the ground, and quacked angrily at Jaws.

"Bite and Water Gun!" I commanded. _I created this combo while we were training; I hope it works!_

Jaws bit the duck's left wing, lifted it up, and then let go blasting it with water. It flew off the roof! _Crap! _ Hawkeye ran over to the side of the building and zapped it back to its poke ball.

"Interesting tactic. Go Pidgeotto!" spoke the gym leader stepping back to his side.

The familiar evolved version of Pidgey took to the skies, and Jaws watched it as it darted all over the place.

"Whirlwind and follow up with a Quick Attack!" ordered Hawkeye. _Crap! He's trying to knock Jaws off!_

"Jaws shoot Water Gun as much as possible; try to hit it!" I said to my totodile.

The blue reptile shot out a stream of water at the Pidgeotto, but he missed. The Pidgeotto flapped its wings quickly and with gusto; a surge of wind was pushing Jaws back. The roof was flat unfortunately, and Jaws was blown off! I hastily zapped him back to his poke ball, and replaced him with Smiley. _This is not what I planned! I better be able to use Jaws again; he wasn't even hurt! And it really sucks that I have to use Smiley now; he's not good against normal Pokemon!_

"Smiley use Confuse Ray!" I ordered. _I'm glad he learned some new moves over the training weekend; he really needed them!_

"Twister!" ordered Hawkeye.

Smiley attacked first, shooting a rotating purple and pink circle lights at his enemy. It floated around the bird's head speedily, dazing it. The bird tried flapping its wings as if to hit something, and ended up crashing onto the roof. _Perfect!_ The bird rose to the air once more, and attempted to flap its wings, but ended up crashing again. This time it looked like it was down for the count.

"Good show! I wasn't expecting a ghost Pokemon for the battle!" spoke the Violet City gym leader, grinning. He tossed another poke ball into the arena unleashing a four foot tall brown bird with a long beak. I hastily scanned it; "FEAROW, BEAK Pokemon. IT CLEVERLY USES ITS THIN, LONG BEACK TO PLUCK AND EAT SMALL INSECTS THAT HIDE UNDER THE GROUND."

"Pursuit," calmly spoke Hawkeye.

"Try Hypnosis!" I shouted to Smiley.

Smiley, watching his enemy, began focusing for preparation for his attack. The Fearow swooped down from the sky, and it spooked Smiley. He stopped focusing and tried to dodge the attack. _Good call._ The Fearow swerved off, only faking out Smiley. Smiley sighed in relief, and as soon as he did the Fearow came back in double the speed and swiped it with its beak. Smiley closed his eyes, and fell to the ground. _That was brutal! _I put Jaws back into the fray after returning Smiley. _How am I supposed to beat this Pokemon and another one! This is crapping hard!_

"Fearow, Peck it!" ordered the gym leader.

"Jaws use Water Gun!" I yelled.

Fearow, ten feet above the building, dove wickedly fast with its beak pointed at Jaws. Jaws began shooting water at his foe; fortunately Fearow focused on speed rather than dodging and was hit. Unfortunately, the water blasts did not stop its rapid descent, and it jabbed Jaws in the left shoulder with its long, pointed beak. Jaws howled in pain, and Fearow screeched in joy. _That bird is evil!_

"Rage!" I screamed.

"Fury Attack!" ordered Hawkeye, then emptying his pipe.

Fearow dive bombed Jaws once more, but this time pecked him in rapid succession. This worked in Jaws' benefit; every peck he took his Rage grew, and chomped and scratched on the bird. The Fearow gave up the attack, and retreated back to the sky. It was dripping blood all over the place, but Jaws wasn't looking much better. His chest was riddled with little wounds from the bird's attack.

"Roost!" commanded Hawkeye, taking a puff from his recently lit pipe.

The Fearow flew away from the battle to the Sprout Tower that was a couple of blocks away, but I could still see it in the distance. It landed on top of the massive tower, and sat there recuperating.

"That's not fair, Hawkeye!" I shouted, detesting the gym leader's tactics.

"Ah! That's where you are wrong, my lad. That is a legitimate Pokemon attack; it allows the flying Pokemon to briefly escape battle and heal itself," explained Hawkeye.

"Whatever! I don't have anything like that; it's so cheap!" I shouted back, waving my fist.

"Well, if you have a potion to use, now would be an ample time to do so," said Hawkeye, chuckling.

"Uh, right!" I responded. I took out one of the purple bottles I recently bought yesterday, and sprayed Jaws. The potion healed Jaws' smaller wounds from Fury Attack completely, but his larger cut from the Peck attack didn't heal up all the way. Despite that, he looked livelier than ever; even trying to shoot Fearow from miles away with his Water Gun attack. _Ah yeah! That's what I like to see!_

"Let's finish this!" I shouted to Hawkeye.

"Not quite. I believe Fearow needs a few more moments," replied Hawkeye wagging his finger. _What the heck? Is this a joke to him?_

To my dismay we waited for ten more minutes (Which gave me an opportunity to check out the crowd, and I spotted Quimbly!) Fearow returned to the battle looking better than ever and looking angrier than ever. It shrieked at Jaws, but that didn't shake Jaws' resolve – He shot it with a blast of water.

"Alright, Jaws! That's the spirit! Bulk Up!" I shouted. _I could cry right now; that was beautiful!_

"Peck," calmly spoke Hawkeye.

Jaws stood rapidly building his muscle mass awaiting for the flying Pokemon's attack. Fearow dive bombed Jaws with more speed than ever, but Jaws anticipated this. He cleared the bird, jumping over it, while it recovered from the missed attack, and Jaws cut the back side of both wings with his claws.

"Jaws, you're the coolest!" I screamed.

The Fearow attempted to take flight once more, but its wings failed him. _The Cut attacks on his wings disabled him! Awesome!_

"Jaws use Water Gun!" I shouted.

The Fearow turned around, and tried to fly away from the attack, but was launched off the roof with the attack. Hawkeye hastily returned it.

"Good show, Blue. I'm surprised with your skill as a trainer; I thought Fearow had your totodile. Here comes the last one!" spoke the gym leader tossing in his final poke ball. It released the Pokemon he arrived to the battle on; a six foot gray scale-y winged creature with a large mouth and long tail. _I must scan._ "AERODACTYL, FOSSIL POKEMON. THIS VISCIOUS POKEMON IS SAID TO HAVE FLOWN IN ANCIENT SKIES WHILE SHRIEKING HIGH-PITCHED CRIES," spoke the monotone device. I read that it was a rock and flying type Pokemon _I don't think I've fought one of those kind before._

"Bite to Wing Attack!" ordered the gym leader.

"Uh Bite!" I ordered as well.

The giant fossil Pokemon swooped down upon Jaws, and he Jumped up biting Aerodactyl's wing. **Chink**. Jaws recoiled from his attack, and Aerodactyl bit his leg. _It hurt Jaws to bite it! What the crap?_ The ancient Pokemon tossed Jaws into the air, and flew up to him whacking him with his dense wings. Jaws flew up even higher, and then crashed back onto the roof on his stomach. He moaned in pain. _This is not looking good. Jaws has to finish this!_

"Jaws get up! You gotta finish this!" I yelled.

Aerodactyl descended down a couple of feet awaiting for his opponent to stand up. Jaws struggled to regain his strength, but he slowly stood up. _I don't think physical attacks are good against it; let's try Water Gun_

"Good job! Water gun!"

Jaws shot out a stream of water at his foe, but the fossil Pokemon barrel rolled away from the attack. It, then, charged Jaws.

"Water Gun!" I shouted.

Jaws shot out another blast of of water, but this time it hit. The Aerodactyl shrieked in pain, and fell to the ground. A moment later, it flew up again and charged my totodile. _What? Water Gun was really good against it! Water's better than rock?_

"Water Gun again and again until you hit!" I shouted.

Jaws spat water at his foe, but it was significantly weaker than before. _I've got to finish this quick! Jaws can't fight much longer!_ Aerodactyl fell to the ground from the attack, and recovered once more. It rushed Jaws, and bit him before Jaws could use his water attack. The ancient Pokemon flew up incredibly high (I could barely make out where it was.), and something happened. The Aerodactyl was free falling back to the roof. **Bam!** Hawkeye's Aerodactyl crashed not the roof, and dust came up cloud spread over the arena. _Where's Jaws?_

I ran over to where Aerodatcyl's impact site, and was splashed with water. I wiped the water off my face, and saw Jaws on the fossil Pokemon's back. _Whoa! I won! _I picked up Jaws and showed everyone that he was still alive and kicking. Then, I finally heard the crowd; a surge of loud roars hit me like a wave. Hawkeye walked over to me, and put up his smoking pipe.

"Good show, lad! I give you the Zephyr Badge, proof you have bested me in the Violet City Gym," he said handing a blue badge that looked like a tornado. _So cool!_

"Thanks!" I replied, taking the badge.

"I haven't been bested in quite some time since some young man named Miles; I'm happy to see there's a few good new trainers out there," Hawkeye said patting me on the back, and handed me a huge wad of cash. _Miles?_ I thought pocketing the winnings.

"I would like to challenge you again, later in your Pokemon training career; I'd like you to face my true flying team. Those were some new Pokemon I recently captured," spoke Hawkeye.

"Let's do it! I'll take you down all over again! Your Aerodactyl is awesome, by the way!" I replied, smirking. Jaws closed his eyes, and I zapped him back to his poke ball. _I think he's out now; good timing buddy!_ I thanked Hawkeye for the battle again, and he handed me a T.M.

"That is Roost. It is the move Fearow used to recover. It is useful in dire situations; use it well," explained the Violet City gym leader. I put it inside my backpack with my now dead T.M.s

I walked to the elevators to be stopped by very many new supporters. Most told me I have great battle technique, and that it was fun to watch. _It's overwhelming to have people liking my Pokemon and stuff!_ I finally ran into Quimbly and she ran over hugging me. _Again?_

"You were amazing out there!" she shrieked.

"Thanks! Let's go to the Poke Center, my Pokemon are pooped!" I replied. Quimbly let go, and we left the gym. _I'm glad Walter didn't stop me! I'm really not in the mood for talking to him. _I checked my poke gear to discover it was six o'clock! _I battled for three hours? It only felt like minutes!_

"Quimbly was the battle really as long as my poke gear tells me?" I asked, yawning.

"Yeah! It was crazy. Berserk's fights were relatively quick, but everyone else's fights were much, much longer. When Jaws took on Fearow that took forever!" Quim replied.

"Wow, that is too unreal. I'm so tired from the battle. All I want to do is eat something, and go to bed," I said, yawning again.

"Sounds good to me! Let's go drop of your Pokemon, and chow down!" she replied, smiling.

We arrived to the Poke Center and I relayed the nurse my awesome battle against Hawkeye. She was impressed with my battling skills, and told me that my Pokemon should be ready by the morning. I thanked her, and Quim and I walked over to the nicest restaurant in town for a celebration dinner. We ate some delicious (and expensive) food, and I chatted about my battle.

"So have you talked to your Mom yet?" asked Quim, after elegantly wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"Yeah I emailed her a couple of days ago. She's happy to hear that I'm alive, but is pretty upset with me. I got her phone number; she wants me to call her soon. I'll probably do it tomorrow and take it from there," I responded with my mouth full.

"You think you can fit more food in there?" scoffed Quimbly.

Two hours later, we went back to the Poke Center, and I could barely keep my eyes open. I bid Quimbly goodnight, and we went into our separate rooms.I laid on my bed, and fell asleep in seconds.

**Knock, knock, knock.**

__I jolted straight up from the bed. I checked my poke gear, and it read five A.M. _What the crap?_ I walked over to the door and slowly opened it. _Walter? __This better be good._

"Walter, what are you doing here? It's kind of early to say hi," I said greeting one of my least favorite people.

"It's Detective Grove. After watching your battle last night against the Violet City gym leader, I'm led to believe that you were capable of murdering your father. And you fabricated the story to the police of your friend, Cas Clifford, being the murder. I am going to arrest you for the murder of Kieren Slade," he replied. _What? No! This is not right!_

He stepped inside the door, and reached for something out of his pocket. I kicked him in the privates, grabbed my backpack, and ran. _Do I tell Quimbly? What do I do? _I slammed the door on the detective, and locked him inside. I ran to Quimbly's room and rattled on her door. She answered the door in her pajamas. Normally I'd chuckle, but I was freaking out.

"Quim, I gotta go. I know you wanted me to watch your battle against Hawkeye, but I can't," I spoke quietly.

"What? What are you talking about?" she asked with one eye not fully opened.

"I don't have much time to talk! I'll email you when I get away from here," I answered, looking back to my room.

"I understand. You don't like me. You need to get away from me. Well that's fine, I can get along fine without you!" she shouted. _Whoa!_

"No, Quim! It's nothing like that; I just can't-" I tried to explain. She shut her door in my face. _I don't have time to explain! I gotta jet! _I ran to the front of the Poke Center, and collected my poke balls from the nurse. I ran as fast as I could to Route 32.

The morning sky was red, and I took to the fields. I stayed away from the path as far as I could, and found some old, decrepit looking buildings. I stepped inside of it, and checked out my poke gear. _I gotta find a way to the next city!_ I pressed the map button, and it informed me that I take Route 32 until I hit a cave, go through there, and a few miles after that I'll be at Azalea Town. _I hope that place has a gym!_ I walked out of the building, and my head started hurting.

"_You will find friends in Azalea Town," _spoke something. I looked around for someone, but didn't see anyone.

"Uh, thanks?" I replied.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: I Could Run For Miles**

_Maybe that voice I heard earlier came from inside the building._ I thought as I walked back inside the old, dilapidated building in search of who or whatever spoke to me.

"Hello. Is anyone here?" I called out into the dark, empty room. _This is dumb; no one talked to me! It was just my imagination! _

I turned around and walked towards the exit once more in utter disappointment. _Maybe I'm going crazy._ Then, suddenly a mass of bats or something descended from the ceiling, and flew around, rubbing up against me. _Ack! What the heck is going on? _I thought pushing the Pokémon away from me.I tried to make a break towards the exit, but the black things blocked me out.

"_We have been waiting for years for you Blue Slade," _spoke something in a placid tone. I desperately looked for the speaker amidst the swarm of strange Pokémon.

"Who's talking to me? What are these black Pokémon?" I shouted hysterically. _There can't be another person in here I would've seen them already!_

_"Do not fear, human! Blue Slade, we, the Unown, have called you,"_ something spoke again.

"What's going on? Who's talking to me?" I shouted looking around in the ancient room.

The black Pokémon stopped, and all floated like wall in front of me. _Those are some weird looking Pokémon! They have one big eye. And they're all different shaped (I like the ones that are 'w' or 'l' shaped!), but all have a very similar look. I wonder how they're up in the air like that; they don't have any wings. _

The thirty or so Pokémon began glowing in a purple hue, and slowly hovered up against a nearby aged wall. Then, the Unown Pokémon slowly shuffled around on the wall, forming some sort of picture. Their formation looked like it had spikes or was angular all over. _Man, what the heck is going on! Are these things trying to tell me something? I can't really make out what they're forming. _ I, then, noticed the topmost part looked like some sort of bird with its beak outstretched up in the air as if it was shrieking or something. _A spiky bird?_

_ "Very close, human! We have formed a depiction of the legendary bird Pokémon, Zapdos. We have gathered to forewarn you of-"_

Then something hit me like a ton of bricks; I had the worst headache of my life – It felt like someone was wailing on my head with a hammer. I closed my eyes briefly, and then I fell to the dusty ground. I saw images came to me in some off ultraviolet color. The first image I saw was men dressed in black – _I've seen guys like this before!_ Then I caught a glimpse of something else entirely: a screeching yellow, spiky, monstrous bird, and as the terrifying, monstrous bird screeched lighting struck all around it. Next, I was shown many armored men in black with machine guns storming a building comprised of massive glass walls. Lastly, an image of the yellow Zapdos Pokémon contained in a peculiar looking capsule-like device was briefly shown to me.

Suddenly the images stopped coming to me. _My headache is gone_!_ What a weird experience! _ I opened my eyes, and most of the Unown Pokémon were now hovering closely above me. My heart was pounding in double speed as I stood up.

_ "Human did you receive the prophecy?" _asked the Pokémon.

I looked directly at one of the Unowns floating around me, and simply shrug my shoulders. _Prophecy? What the crap is going on! I don't feel too good; __I feel like I could throw up! What the heck? Are these Pokémon talking to me about some giant bird? I do not have time for this! I'm out of here!_ I darted out of the building, and ran for a long while until I reached a large body of water. _Did I just have visions or something? I remember hearing about prophecies before, but I thought they were I don't know what that was all about, but I don't like it. I think I'm far away enough. I need to get moving towards Azalea Town. _

I looked at my poke gear to see that it several hours passed. _What? Those stupid one-eyed Pokémon knocked me out for hours! When I was shown images only felt like seconds! I have to really get moving, so that detective guy doesn't catch up with me. I don't want to get arrested! I should probably keep my Pokémon in their poke balls; I don't want to get held up in a battle or something. Besides this'll give them more time to recover from yesterday's gym battle – Man that was fun! Focus Blue._

I quickly memorized where I needed to go from the map, and I continued my trek to Azalea Town. _I hope there's no more weirdness like those Unowns!_ I made sure to steer away from the main path and open areas, so I wouldn't draw attention. _I can't get slowed down by battles right now! I got to get far away as soon as possible from Violet City and that detective jerk._ Adrenaline was still pumping through my body from all the craziness – strange Pokémon, visions, and fleeing from an angry detective. To my dismay it wasn't a very fun or thrilling walk; I became paranoid that someone was going to pop up out of nowhere and arrest me. _I can't believe they want to now arrest me for Dad's murder! I thought I was clear on all that. There's no reason why they would think I would do that!_ Despite my firm belief that I was innocent, I constantly looked over my shoulder expecting to see someone in a trench coat or a cop.

I also had fleeting thoughts about where I now stood with Quimbly. _I hope I have a chance to meet up with her again to fully explain my situation. It's dreadful to think that she hates me!_ It was grim thinking I lost my only friend because of my past – because of Cas. _What a friend that guy turned out to be!_

I stopped for to eat a couple of hours after my strange encounter in the ruins, and ate by myself. _Man, this is so depressing!_ _I can hardly stand this lone-wolf business, but I guess that's the life I inadvertently chose when I kicked that detective in the privates. Wait a second! I forgot about my Pokémon! _

I released my Pokémon from their poke balls, and I rummaged through my backpack for some food. _Crap! I'm out of food. I'm exhausted._ As if my Pokémon could read my minds they ran off in search of food (or so I hope!). Smiley and Berserk took to the trees, and Jaws sniffed the air and headed back to the lake I passed up earlier. _Alright! I love my Pokémon! I think now is a great time to take a little nap! _I sat down the thick, green grass of Route thirty-two, and reclined, resting my head upon my tattered backpack.

"Oof!" I spat out after knocking Berserk off my gut. The furry Mankey Pokémon was grinning, and proceeded to jump on my belly some more.

"Hey don't jump on me like that!" I scolded my monkey Pokémon, now sitting up. I, then, spotted what Berserk was carrying in his furry little paws, a dead Pidgey. _Yummy? I wish Quim was here; I have no clue how to cook that thing!_

Smiley then came out of nowhere and licked me on the side of my face. _These guys love to mess with me! __Yuck!_ He spat out a plethora of berries out of his mouth that landed into my lap. _Double yuck!_

"Thanks guys! You two are great! Where's Jaws?" I asked petting Berserk.

Berserk shrugged his shoulders in return similarly how I did only moments ago. I sighed deeply. _I hope he's okay!_ I took the dead bird from Berserk, and attempted to pluck the feathers out of the dead bird Pokémon. Berserk and Smiley observed me as I readied the bird to eat, and Berserk decided to help me. I looked up from the bird, and smiled at my Mankey Pokémon. _Man, he's really growing out of his angry shell. And look at him now; he's gone out of his way to deliver this Pidgey to me and even help me prepare it! He's even grown some; his arms' muscles look twice the size than they used to. Although now he's missing a few patches of hair (mostly on top of his head from those bird Pokémon from Violet City Gym) from battle scars. I hope that fur grows back! I'd feel awful if that was permanent!_ I thought to myself and chuckling a little.Smiley watched as we worked on our dinner, and would attempt to scare us. The ghost Pokémon would shriek with laughter when Berserk would stop helping me and chase after him. After we plucked all of the feathers, I found some suitable wood to make a small fire to roast the bird.

By the time I got the fire started (Boy was that a feat in itself! I hope there's fire Pokémon out there for this crap!), Jaws returned with an orange fish like last time. He looked proud of himself for returning to me with food. He spat it out in front of me, and I gave him a congratulatory pet on the head. _Jaws is still looking a little worn from the epic gym battle yesterday. He's looking so much bigger though! I remember that first day when I got him he didn't look as near as tough as he does now. _ I found a large stick, and stuck the fish and bird through it. I, then, instructed Jaws and Berserk to hold the stick on either side of the fire, and to turn it when I say so. They followed my orders to a t, and we ate shortly afterward when I thought the food looked done.

I let the Pokémon eat the berries and the fish, while I chowed down on the roasted Pidgey. _I don't think I could eat those berries after it's been in Smiley's mouth, and the fish isn't de-scaled._ The Pokémon ate the fish and berries happily. We finished up, put out the fire, and I returned them to their respective poke balls. I looked around briefly to make sure no one was following me, and walked on. As I walked I looked up to the red sky through the thick trees. _Wow that looks cool! I can't believe its dusk already. _

I hastily walked for several more hours towards Azalea Town. I sneaked past several trainers – _I wish I had time to battle!_ The moon was setting by the time I reached a small sign that read, "Union Cave". _I don't see a cave. _Then before I knew it, I was inside the Union Cave. The cave was terribly darker than it was outside, and my footing was different because of the rocky-like terrain. I was thankful how much cooler it was inside this cave compared to the heat outside. _I've never been in somewhere as horribly dark as this cave. I don't like it one bit! I want to get through here quick!_ Fortunately there was some light from torches set up at different parts in the cave. _Man, I wish I passed through here during the day then I could see light coming out of the exit! It's going to be tough navigating through here!_

I carefully tread through the cave from dimly lit torch to dimly lit torch. I figured it was safer to travel with have little visibility rather than none. When I reached the fourth torch I could make out three dark figures standing near the next torch. I couldn't distinguish them or what they were doing besides just standing by the light of the next torch. _I wonder what they're doing in here. I hope they're nice trainers passing through here like me. If they aren't, I could always walk around that area avoiding the next torch outright; if I did that they wouldn't be able to see me. Then again if I did do that I wouldn't be able to see crap. _

After a couple more moments of debating, I decided to risk it and walk to where the three people were standing. As I stepped closer I could observe the three slightly better. The lot of them were dressed in identical black outfits with a crescent moon on the shirt. _Hey those black shirt guys look familiar! Where did I see it before?_ I continued looking on at the three before stepping forth; one guy in the middle towered over the other two and had his colossal, muscular arms crossed. To his right, was a guy with long black hair that covering his face, and was fiddling with something shiny in his hand. And the guy on the left was sitting on something round-like. _What a group of guys. I would love to take a moment to relax and sit on whatever that thing is. It sure looks comfy enough!_

_They seem nice enough, I guess. Here goes nothing._ I approached the trio with my left hand behind my back holding onto Jaws' poke ball. _Just in case._

"Hey! Look guys, we got a visitor!" spoke the guy sitting on a large, multicolored ball in an almost unbearably high-pitched voice, snickering. He looked like as if he was donning a black and purple jester's hat that swayed as he moved back and forth as he giggled.

"Ho! So it seems Seth!" spoke the deep-voiced big guy. _That guy is huge! He must be part Machoke or something!_

"Hey. I'm, um, Blue. I don't want to be a bother; I'm just passing through," I spoke, gulping afterward. The big guy and the jester guy grinned after I spoke. _Have they been waiting for trainers to pass through Union Cave? _

"Did you say Blue?" questioned the black, long-haired one in a cold voice. He stared at me waiting for my answer; it felt like his eyes were searching for my deepest, darkest fears. _I have a bad feeling about this guy. Answer him, and get out of here._

"Y-yes,"I replied nervously.

"Ho! Geezer said the kid would come this way! About time he was right!" slowly spoke the muscular giant. _Who's Geezer I wonder._

"Looky! He finally arrived. You know we've been waiting for you for hours. Do you realize how boring it is waiting in a cave?" Seth asked drawing out the 'o' in boring. _Waiting for me?_

"Shut up, both of you! We need to get down to business," quickly spoke the long-haired guy smacking Seth and the other guy upside the head. This surprised the jester guy, and he slipped off his large ball onto the ground. _Don't laugh!_

"Ho! I guess we can fight now, Kieran?" asked the large guy turning to the long haired guy. _Fight? Why would they want to fight me in here? Oh wait Blue, that's obvious. It's a cave it'll be a breeze for them to take my stuff and leave me in here. It'd take the police ages to find my body. I could try to run back out the exit through all the darkness or take on these guys._

"Obviously, Frank!" replied the other two in unison.

Without giving me a chance to ask what was going on, they each threw a poke ball in front of me. _Looks like my choice has been made for me!_ Seth released a red and white round Pokémon that looked remarkably like a poke ball, Frank released a three foot tall chubby, yellow Pokémon, and Kieran released a purple snake Pokémon. The three Pokémon stood in the torch's light with their masters waiting for my next move. _Three against one! I gotta get all my guys out of here!_

I released Berserk, Smiley, and Jaws out of their poke balls. _Wow this is shaping up to be an epic battle! I can totally take on these clowns!_ The six Pokémon squared off against each other; meanwhile I hastily scanned all three new opposing Pokémon. " EKANS, SNAKE Pokémon. IT ALWAYS HIDES IN GRASS. WHEN FIRST BORN, IT HAS NO POISON, SO ITS BITE IS PAINFUL, BUT HARMLESS. VOLTORB, BALL Pokémon. IT WAS DISCOVERED WHEN POKE BALLS WERE INTRODUCED. IT IS SAID THAT THERE IS SOME CONNECTION. MAKUHITA, GUTS Pokémon. IT TOUGHENS UP BY SLAMMING INTO THICK TREES OVER AND OVER. IT GAINS A STURDY BODY AND DAUNTLESS SPIRIT. _Okay, one poison, one electric, and one fighting Pokémon._

After gaining this new found knowledge about my opponent's Pokémon, I told Smiley to fight Makuhita (Fighting Pokémon can't hit ghosts.), Jaws against Ekans, and Berserk against Voltorb (Voltorb would annihilate Jaws with his electric attacks). My Pokémon did their best to stick to their targets, but the opposing Pokémon completely messed up my strategy. The electric faux-poke ball Pokémon tried to tackle Jaws while charged with electricity. Jaws narrowly dodged the electric attack, and Berserk jumped in between the two to prevent any more cheap shots. _What a cheap shot! _The Voltorb's attack illuminated the cave considerably, but only for a moment. It gave me a chance to get a better look at my opponents and their Pokémon. All three guys were smirking as if they were enjoying trying to beat the snot out of me. _Crap! I see how this battle is gonna go down; no rules and loads of cheap shots. These guys are really freaking me out! I hope we can get out of this one…alive!_

"You guys are going down! Smiley use Night Shade attack on that fatty, Berserk Rock Slide Voltorb, and Jaws use Water Gun on the snake!" I ordered swiftly.

"Kid, you have no chance," spoke Kieran with a determined look.

Smiley lurked outside the torch's light, (I could barely make him out through the darkness!) and performed his attack on the unsuspecting fighting Pokémon. Makuhita was enveloped in a purple aura, and then it fell to its knees moaning in pain. _Silent takedown! Alright!_

"Uh, guys. I can't see what Makuhita is supposed to be fighting. Whatever it is it's beating up my Pokémon. I can only see two of that kid's Pokémon…" muttered the muscle-bound goon.

"Hehe! Sorry dear old Frank, I don't see anything attacking your Pokémon!" squealed Seth, now standing upon his ball.

"Fools! Focus! We can't lose to this spoiled brat! It's three against one; odds are in our favor! Don't you see it lurking outside the light? It's a Gastly, and it's laying waste to your gluttonous Makuhita Frank! Ekans wrap that Totodile!" barked Kieran. _It seems like he's the boss of the three. It makes sense; he's the only one with half a brain._

Meanwhile, Jaws and Berserk attacked their opponents head on. Jaws shot out a stream of water at the snake Pokémon, and Berserk attempted to perform Rock Slide attack on Voltorb. He messed up the execution of the attack because of the darkness; Berserk's kick landed short of the stalactite hanging off the ceiling. Voltorb took advantage of Berserk's failure and launched an interesting attack. The electric Pokémon twirled with impressive speed, and launched air waves or something at Berserk as he descended. This launched Berserk far off into the darkness.

I turned my attention back to Ekans and Jaws. It seemed that Jaws' Water Gun attack didn't faze the Ekans much, and it lunged at Jaws wrapping its body around him tightly. The snake Pokémon held onto Jaws and continually squeezed him. Jaws grimaced in pain. _How am I going to get Ekans off of Jaws? _I looked back to Smiley or to Makuhita, and saw Makuhita still enveloped in the purple aura from my ghost Pokémon's Night Shade attack. _At least one Pokémon is beating their opponent!_

"Keep it up Smiley! Jaws use Bulk Up, and throw Ekans off you! Berserk dodge Voltorb's attacks, and keep trying to use Rock Slide!" I directed.

Jaws focused despite his painful predicament, and beefed up considerably. Despite this momentary muscle growth, he was struggling to remove Ekans off him. _If only his arms were free! Wait! He still has his mouth! I can't believe I forgot about his namesake!_

"Try to bite Ekans, and throw him off!" I ordered. _I can't believe how quiet those guys are. They're not even ordering their Pokémon!_

Jaws stopped trying to lift Ekans off him, and bit Ekans directly underneath his head. This caused Ekans to recoil from the attack, and it backed away from Jaws. The snake Pokémon hissed angrily at Jaws, and Jaws growled right back at it.

"Way to go Jaws! You have Ekans on the ropes!" I shouted.

"Now is your chance Voltorb! Use Spark!" ordered Kieran. _Wait a second, __I thought Ekans was his Pokémon not Voltorb!_

"Jaws! Behind you!" I shouted.

The Voltorb charged Jaws once more charged with sparks crackling all over his body. Unfortunately Jaws was too focused on Ekans to notice Voltorb coming at him. The attack was a direct hit, and Jaws was knocked back with electricity coursing throughout his body. Jaws howled in pain. My blue reptile Pokémon was now on his knees and panting heavily from the attack. _This isn't looking too good!_ Voltorb backed off to where Ekans watched.

"Hang in there Jaws! Berserk cover Jaws! Use Rock Slide!" I ordered with tears swelling up in my eyes. _I hope Jaws is okay! _

"Are you going to cry little cry-baby? We're not going to kill your Pokémon; we're going to kill you!" snickered the jester-like bad guy.

While that jerk was laughing, Berserk leaped up to the ceiling of the cave, and kicked a large chunk of rock down at the bad guy's Pokémon. The rock tumbled down with great speed and with a loud crash it fell upon the three huddled bad Pokémon. _That'll show them!_

After the dust passed from Berserk's attack, I saw the three dressed in black had looks of shock on their face. That sentiment quickly faded away and shifted to rage when they realized that their Pokémon were now unable to battle because of me. The muscle man started walking towards me cracking his knuckles, and Seth began rolling over to me on his ball. The leader took out something and started throwing them at me. I started running around to avoid getting hit by whatever Kieran was throwing, but I was having a hard time seeing where I was going. One of the shiny objects hit me in the calf; I pulled it out and it was a small knife! _They are really trying to kill me! _I sped off in double speed away from throwing proximity of Kieran. Then, suddenly, I was face-to-face with the muscleman, Frank. He grabbed my neck, and lifted me up off the ground. _Great! Now I'm face-to-face to this behemoth of a man, and he's going to strangle me to death in a dark cave. They won't find my body for days. What a great way to go!_

Not a moment too late a terrifying roar echoed through the cave. _Wh-what was that?_ Frank dropped me out of fear, and looked behind him. A monstrous rock snake-like Pokémon whacked Frank with his tail. _What a pleasant surprise!_ With an mighty "Oof!", the muscle-bound goon was smashed into one of the sides of the cave.

"Frank! Are you okay?" screeched Seth as he rolled over to his comrade.

The giant rock snake roared powerfully again, and Seth hoisted Frank upon his multicolored ball. He then took off with great speed towards the entrance of Union Cave. I looked over to where I last saw Kieran and he was gone. _Those cowards! They try to kill me, and run off when the going gets tough. I have to face this thing now! _The large rock Pokémon stared me down menacingly. _Maybe it was being helpful to my predicament. I'll try to call out to it, and befriend it!_

"Oh great, prodigious Pokémon thank you for saving me from those awful people. You have my eternal thanks! Could you please let me, and my Pokémon pass?" I asked, bowing slightly. _I really hope it understood all that. Then again Pokémon are really just animals._

The colossal rock snake Pokémon simply continued to stare me down. _That didn't go through it's thick skull! What now?_

"Berserk, Jaws, Smiley!" I called out to my Pokémon.

Berserk came over to me walking slowly with Jaws leaning on him. Smiley appeared directly in my face and proceeded to lick it. _Typical Smiley!_ A wave of relief cascaded over me. _They're okay. I have to think of an exit strategy now. Jaws is down; it's a shame because he's good against those rock types. Berserk and Smiley'll have to fight this behemoth, so we can finally make it through. Here goes nothing!_

"Smiley lick that thing's face and try to keep it distracted! Berserk, if you can, go its back side while Smiley has it distracted and Low Kick it!" I ordered. _We gotta beat this thing! _

Jaws looked up at me awaiting his orders. I gave him a reassuring 'Not this time' look, and I zapped Jaws back to his poke ball. The massive rock snake roared loudly, and it looked eager to fight. _It looks like I've really upset it! _ _I hate this cave!_ Smiley made the first move, and hovered right into his face then licked it. The rock Pokémon let out another terrifying roar, and smashed his tail on the ground causing the ground to shake. _How strong is this thing? It's crapping shaking the ground!_

I couldn't see Berserk whatsoever, but I had faith he was doing his best to take down this enormous monster of a Pokémon. The rock snake was doing its best to head-butt and bite at Smiley as he continued to antagonize it. Suddenly the rock snake turned around away from Smiley. _Berserk's hurting him!_ _ He needs to get out of that things line of fire though. It'll completely crush him!_

"Berserk hop up on that thing's back, and Karate Chop it! And Smiley use a confuse ray!" I ordered quickly.

I still couldn't make out Berserk; even when I squinted my eyes. I could tell, however, that he was listening to me; the rock snake had its head up looking for it and moaning in pain. Then I saw a little light hit the rock Pokémon. _That must be confusion ray!_

The rock snake then started flailing around and hitting all sides of the cave. I could hear rocks crashing all around me. _He's tearing this place down! I gotta catch him or we'll all die in this stupid cave!_

"Berserk and Smiley come to me!" I shouted. Smiley hovered over to me, and shortly afterward Berserk came to me. Berserk was looking tired; he was breathing heavily. He was holding his arm as if there was something wrong with it. Smiley looked okay; he seemed to enjoy tormenting this wild Pokémon. _We don't have time for any more battling. We gotta go!_ I returned both Pokémon to their poke balls respectively.

I turned my full attention to the giant dark rock snake. I couldn't see him too well, but I could hear him moaning in pain. _Good he's weak! Catching him should be a cinch!_ I tossed out an empty poke ball from my back pack at the creature. A bright, red light shot out at the Pokémon, and it was zapped inside. I heard a ding, and I ran around looking for the poke ball. Eventually I found it from my poke gear's light, and hastily put it on my belt. As soon as I lifted up the newly captured Pokémon's poke ball a boulder smashed behind me, and startled me. _That was too close for comfort!_

I dashed through the cave in the direction I thought was towards the exit. I felt disorientated from all the falling rocks. _I hope I'm going the right way! If not I'll be stuck outside this cave until the rocks settle and get moved! _

"I hate this cave!" I exclaimed as I advanced through the collapsing cave.

I could hear rocks crashing all around as I made my way through Union Cave. Eventually I could see a sliver of light emanating from outside. _Almost there! _I ran harder than before towards the light, and in what felt like hours I made it outside. _Whew! I made it! _

"I made it!" I shouted thrusting my arms up into the arm. _I don't think I've ever been so happy to be outside! _I took a deep breath of the fresh air and smiled. I looked down at my clothes and they were covered in dirt. _Stupid cave makes me look like a hobo now! Great!_ I looked up to the sky, and saw a glowing full moon. _That's what lead me out of there!_ I turned around looking at the cave. _Good riddance!_

I threw my frustrations aside to look at my poke gear. It read nine fifteen P.M. _Oh my Arceus! What the crap! It is so late! I need to just make it to the next town, and everything'll be okay._ I pressed the map button and found out it was only about a mile to my destination. _Finally some good news! Feels like ages since something has gone my way!_

The full moon illuminated the ground, and I found the path to Azalea Town. I walked around observing the wild life. It was more forest-y than any other place I've been; the trees were abundant and thick. I tried my best to avoid wild Pokémon because I was too tired to even think of battling. I walked a good while longer and came across a rather large well. _I should probably avoid this for now; I bet there's scary Pokémon in there. Don't little girls get stuck in wells all the time? _

I arrived to Azalea Town before the clock reached ten o'clock. Azalea was similar to Violet City because they both had that ancient, revering ancient spirits vibe to it. It didn't have street lights, yet it was lit from large candle-like structures throughout the city. The main difference from Violet was that it was considerably smaller. I could pinpoint key places like the Azalea Town Gym, Pokémon Center, and Poke Mart as soon as I walked in. I noticed there was also a suburban area with a few houses. I made my way to the Poke Center eager to get some shut eye. Suddenly someone walking briskly bumped into me, and continued walking.

"Hey! Watch where you're going, man!" I shouted grumpily. _It's been a long day, and the last thing I need is some busy-body knocking me over._

The person turned around to face me. The teenager had tan skin and curly brown hair. _It was Miles from several days ago! Looks like he ditched his glasses! _ He was holding a jug filled with something brown and foamy.

"H-hey! So, so, sorry my guh-good man. I'm ja-just walking to the Poke Center to go piss and sleep. My uh-pologies! hic-" he replied smiling oddly.

"Miles! It's me, Blue. We battled like a week ago or so. Remember? You almost killed my Totodile, and then revived it. Remember me?" I asked walking closer to him.

"Oh my! What luck I have! Can we tuh-talk to-tomorrow? I'm ruh-really not in the right mind for remembering. Go-ood night!" He replied still smiling strangely. He resumed walking to the Poke Center. I followed him inside. I stopped to speak to the Azalea Town Poke Center nurse, and he walked to the back of the building.

"Hello there! I **just** got out of Union Cave, and my Pokémon are tired and beat up. Do you think you could heal them?" I said greeting the nurse at the front desk.

She scanned my Pokémon individually and informed me that Jaws' condition is critical – Voltorb's attack evaporated nearly all of the liquid in his body. She continued telling me that water Pokémon need considerable amount of water in their body at all times to stay alive. She said it was going to be several days to completely rejuvenate Jaws. _Those black shirt guys are mega-jerks! _She also told me that Berserk's left arm was broken, and that might take a day or two to heal up completely. I thanked her for healing my Pokémon, and asked if there were any available rooms. She said no, but told me one room had two beds in it. I thanked her once more, and advanced to my room.

I walked to the room behind the Poke Center, unlocked it, and opened the door. I got an eyeful of Miles stark naked with his toothbrush in his mouth. _Ugh. Why is he naked and brushing his teeth? This caps off to my crappy day. Not to mention he's considerably hairier than I imagined. _

"Hey-hey! You're that guy from earlier. Are you hear to have a good time?" He asked removing the toothbrush from his mouth, and smiling weird.

"No way, man! I'm here to go to sleep. I'm your roommate, you weirdo! Don't mess with me!" I shouted angrily.

Miles seemed offended by what I said, and closed the bathroom door. _What a relief._ I turned off the lights, and climbed into one of the two beds. I chose the one that didn't look like a complete mess. A second later Miles turned on the light again, and climbed into his bed.

"Good night, cutie," mumbled Miles.

_Ugh! I thought this guy was grumpy not some weirdo! Hopefully tomorrow'll be better. I will never going in that stupid cave ever again. _


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Only Time Will Tell**

"Reeee!" shrieked something in the darkness. Lightning crashed revealing Zapdos, a monstrous yellow bird, flying above me. Zapdos' body glowed yellow, and I could see electricity run from its long narrow beak to its jagged yellow feathers. I let out a cry of panic. The great shining bird looked down upon me. Paralyzed with fear, all I could manage was to gaze right back at the spiked yellow bird overhead. Then as if I disrespected a God, the scary beast let out one last unnerving shriek warning me of my horrible fate. I watched as a bright lightning bolt crashed upon me.

"Ahh!" I screamed, sitting upright in my bed. I was drenched in a cold sweat. _What a terrible nightmare! Th-th-that was Zapdos, the electric bird Pokémon that those weird Unown were telling me about yesterday in my dream._

"Wh-what's going on?" moaned someone lying in my bed. Their shirtless back faced me dauntingly. _What is this? Who is sleeping in my bed?_ I quickly looked over to my right where Miles should be dozing off on his bed, and he wasn't there. _Alright, it's only Miles in my bed._

"I'm sorry, Miles. I had the most terrifying nightmare; it really freaked me out. I didn't mean to wake you," I replied apologetically, looking to my left to Miles in my bed. _Wait! Why is that weird-o in my bed!_

"Wait a minute! Why are you in **my** bed?" I shouted, pulling his back onto the bed. Miles grinned at me with his eyes closed.

"Hmm. That is a good question!" Miles replied amiably. He then sat up, and tapped me on the nose. _What. The. Crap._

"No! Don't do that!" I shouted back, whacking his hand away from my face. _What is up with this guy?_

"Geez! Sorry for being cute!" Miles replied pouting with his arms crossed.

"Well, I'm going to go back to sleep now. Wanna join me?" he asked smiling again. _I wonder if Miles was always quick to change his mood. This guy makes me feel super uncomfortable; I need to think of an out A.S.A.P._

"Uhm… No thanks, Miles. I think I'm gonna go check on my Pokémon up front," I replied quickly, shifting my eyes to the ground. I jumped out of the bed, slipped on my shoes, and left without changing my stinky, dirty clothes from the day before.

"See ya!" said Miles as the door closed behind me. _I can't believe I caught up with Miles. And what I really can't get around my head is how strange he is; I don't remember him being nice and so touchy-feely. He was more of a grumpy, nerdy, sourpuss kind of person when I first met him a week or so back. I noticed he ditched his glasses, too. I wonder what's got into him. Hopefully he'll be acting somewhat normal when I come back to the room or even better he'll be gone._

I walked to the front desk of the Poke Center to speak to an eerily similar-looking nurse about the condition of my Pokémon. _Man! All these Poke Center nurses all look alike!_

"Good morning Nurse..?" I said greeting the pretty nurse at the front desk.

"Hello! You can call me Nurse Glee, and good morning to you, too!" she replied with a warm smile. _Man, I really want to ask if all these are related somehow, but she'll probably think I'm some kind of weirdo. At least she's nice and chipper like the other Poke Center nurses I've come across._

"Thanks! I was wondering if you could check on the condition of my Pokémon please. My name is-"

"Hmm. You are Blue, right? Trainer number three-seven-one-zero-two-six?" asked the nurse, as she scanned a clipboard inches away from her face. I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't in a dream. _That was seconds! She knew who I was in a matter of seconds!_

"Yeah that's me...! You're awfully quick, Nurse Glee!" I replied a tad startled.

"Thanks! Now about your Pokémon, Blue, your Onix and Gastly are in good condition and will be returned to you now. However, I regret to inform you that your Mankey and Totodile will need to spend more time here to fully recover," she hastily informed with the clipboard still directly in her face.

"Bu-but...When will I get all of my Pokémon back?" I asked, a little apprehensively.

"As we speak your Mankey is recovering from surgery. We had to fix his furry little broken arm! Don't worry, the reinforcement we placed in his arm is completely safe, and will likely biodegrade when he evolves. He'll need a day or two more to rest and recover here. Your Totodile on the other hand, is a bit more of a serious case. You notified us last night that he was hit with a Voltorb's Spark attack, and, well, that very electric attack nearly evaporated all the water in your Totodile. The poor little Pokémon was barely functioning when we were checking him last night. The bad thing about that is that water Pokémon live with more water in their system than say normal Pokémon or even your or me, and without their water reserves they will die from dehydration That is how water Pokémon like your Totodile survive outside of water, with massive amounts of water in their system," Nurse Glee explained. _Whaaaaat?_

"Uhm...I don't know if I understood all that, but is Jaws going to be okay?" I asked loudly, and angrily. _I didn't want to hear all this science garble! I just want to know if Jaws will be okay! He's my first Pokémon for Arceus' sake!_

"Most likely, yes. It is a very delicate procedure, and may take up to two weeks to finish," she replied with a comforting smile, extinguishing my fiery rage.

"Two weeks? Why can't you just put them in that P.H.D. thingy?" I asked with astonishment. _I didn't realize the gravity of Pokémon battles. I figured that electricity might be Jaws' weakness, but I thought he could handle it. I really need to figure out all the different types of Pokémon; that will make me a better Pokémon trainer. But I'm so happy I decided to power through my tiredness last night to Azalea instead of camping out._

"Yes, two weeks. It's the standard time for this kind of hydration procedure. I wish it was that easy; the P.H.D. device is used primarily for quick fixes, like, cuts, fatigue, and bruises. Dire wounds need specialty healing or surgical procedures. Anyways, I'll let you know if something comes up. Oh! And here are your two Pokémon. By the way, your Onix, she's the largest one I've ever seen," Nurse Glee said handing me my two poke balls. _She? That giant rock snake thing is a girl? No way! Scanning time!_

"Thanks! I'll come by tomorrow to check up on them!" I said after attaching the poke balls to my belt. _Can't forget about Jaws or Berserk, but this 'Onix' or whatever it is will keep me busy. I can't believe I'm down to only two Pokémon now. It's kinda sad. _

I eagerly sped off to Route Thirty-Three on an rumbling stomach longing to unleash my gigantic rock snake monster of an Pokémon. Within minutes, I was on Route Thirty-Three, and released my rock snake Pokémon into a grassy field. As if it was awoken from a long slumber it let out a booming yawn, and stretched its long body on the grass. _Nurse Glee wasn't kidding; that thing is huge!_ I thought looking upon the Pokémon. I went to reach behind me to rummage through my backpack for my pokedex, but I forgot my backpack in my room. _Crap! Now I'm going to have to go back, and deal with Miles._

I reluctantly returned my Pokémon, and walked back to the Poke Center. _Thankfully Azalea is super close to Route Thirty-Three. _I arrived back in about ten minutes or so, and made my way back to my room with a painfully hungry stomach. _Ack! I need to eat some breakfast!_ I opened the door to our room slowly, walked through, and closed it quietly. _Whew! I didn't make a peep. _Miles was still sound asleep on my bed.

I scanned the room for my backpack, and saw the beat-up item slouched near the right side of the bed closest to where I slept. I tip-toed to my backpack, and quietly slung it over my shoulders. _I did it, and I didn't even wake up Miles! _I launched my fist into the air, and mouthed 'I am the champion!'. Without realizing it, I accidentally tapped a poke ball on Mile's belt that was lying on the floor. A brief red light filled the room, and a two foot tall black faced triangular-shaped Pokémon was transported on top of the bed. The Pokémon, like a young child, instinctively began jumping on the bed. It squealed with joy, and waved its short arms as it jumped up and down.. I quickly grabbed it by its beige sides, (The Pokémon's whole back was beige I noticed as well.) and dropped it face-down onto the bed because of how surprisingly frigid it was. It squealed angrily at me, and somehow snow began fall in the room. In a matter of seconds, the entire room was covered in a light blanket of snow. _Whoa! That is crazy! Is this little Pokémon making it snow!_

"Brr. Why-Why is it so cold in here?" asked a recently awoken Miles rubbing his eyes and shivering. _Crap!_

"Uhm...yeah. I accidentally released your little Pokémon, and I think I upset it...It made it snow in here! Sorry!" I replied, smiling weakly.

"Ugh! Just the wake up call I needed after a great night of drinking...Snorunt stop that! Wait a second - Who and why are you in my room?" spoke Miles grumpily. _Miles seems really upset! I should explain to him who I am I guess, but I can't believe he really doesn't remember me! Wow! I bet he is really dumb! _The snow stopped falling.

"You really don't remember, do you? I'm Blue. I battled you a week or so ago, and we ran into each other last night in Azalea Town. Then when I asked for a room, I was booked to roomed with you seeing as there are two beds in here," I explained in full, shivering. _Geez! It's still cold in here!_

"Oh man! I really dodged the bullet! I thought I did something...stupid last night. I do really dumb stuff when I'm drunk. And, yeah, of course I remember you! You called me a dork when I was stuck on Route Thirty, and I, then, whooped you," he replied stretching out his arms. _Drunk?_ Miles then let out a long yawn, looking rather relieved about how everything turned out, and motioned me to his poke ball. I handed the shirtless guy his poke ball, and then he lazily returned his Pokémon. _I guess this turned out well? He doesn't seem like he actively hates me like he did a week ago or is strangely nice to me like last night._

"Yeah, so anyway, Miles...I'm gonna go grab some breakfast somewhere. Do you know of anywhere good?" I asked after a short pause of silence.

"Definitely, dude. Let me get dressed real quick, and I'll take you to it," he replied. Miles then got out of bed completely nude. _He slept in the same bed as me...NAKED!_ I instantly looked away, and now found myself staring intently at my shoes. _He didn't even bother asking me to go outside to wait for him!_

"Alright, Blue, ready to go?" he asked in a matter of seconds. I cautiously looked up, and I was shocked to see a fully clothed Miles. _Wow! That was quick. _

Miles guided me to the sole restaurant in the entire town, the Bamboo Palace. It was hands-down the coolest looking restaurant I've eaten at. The outside looked like a giant fort-like structure made completely out of bamboo with two statues of some bear-like Pokémon in ferocious positions as if they were guarding the restaurant. The service was as great as the food. Bamboo Palace was run by the Shin family, consisting of young waiters and waitresses, older ones cooking, and wrinkly ones ordering everyone. One of the elderly Shins informed me that they were making a killing as of late because they were the only restaurant in town, and the new gym leader is pulling in all sorts of trainers. _Is the Azalea Town gym leader good? _We devoured our breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and bacon. _This is the best breakfast I've had in ages! This is almost as good as Mom's pancakes. Oh man! I've totally forgot to check in with Mom! It's been nearly a month, too! _

"Hey, what's wrong Blue? You started frowning after you finished your second round of those delicious, syrupy pancakes," asked Miles grinning.

I chuckled, and then replied; "No it's not it was bad or anything – I really enjoyed it! It's just that I've totally forgotten to keep in touch with my Mom, and I feel pretty bad about it."

"I knew it couldn't be the food; it's one of the best things about this tiny, forest town. So you haven't talked to your Mom in a while; is that a big deal? I mean, I'm sure she will understand; you are a Pokémon trainer after all, it kind of goes without saying that keeping in touch is tough when you're traveling so freaking much," Miles said earnestly. He then went for another enormous bite of pancakes. _He does have a point. That is why, after all, why I haven't kept in touch with her. I've been so busy! But I do owe it to her..._

"Yeah, good point. I'll have to get in touch with her soon, that's all!" I replied with a friendly smile.

"So, Blue, I take it you're here to battle the 'Pokémon Prodigy' here in Azalea, right?" asked Miles, after gulping down his glass of milk.

"Pokémon Prodigy? Is that a rare Pokémon?" I mumbled with a full mouth of food.

"You don't know?" questioned Miles in disbelief. I slowly shook my head sideways. _Great job, Blue. First you wake the guy up by literally freezing the room over, and now you don't know something important. Way to make him like you._

"You're kidding, right?" he asked. I slowly shook my head signaling a resounding 'no' once more. Miles began bursting with laughter.

"Woo! Oh man, you crack me up. I think you're the only trainer here that doesn't know who that is! The 'Pokémon Prodigy', so they call him around here, is the gym leader here in Azalea. I heard he's been battling since he was four months old! He's supposed to be some kind of Pokémon battling genius or something. I signed up to take him on a day or two ago, and the waiting list is for two weeks!" explained Miles exasperatingly. _That's the Miles I remember - Always agitated about something. But I can't really blame him; I don't think I could wait two weeks for a battle._

"Crap! I got to go to then! I don't want to wait forever for a stupid gym badge!" I exclaimed, getting up from the table.

"Alright! I'll come with ya. Knowing you, you'd think the Azalea Gym was the Poke Mart," responded Miles. _Hmm. I guess that's okay. He did inform me that the waiting list is ridiculously long._

"...Good one. Yeah, show me the way," I replied begrudgingly.

After paying for our meal, we left in a hurry to the Azalea Gym. It wasn't quite as magnificent or tall as the tower-like gym in Violet, but this one definitely had its own unique feel to it. The gym was a great, big greenhouse. The cool thing about the greenhouse gym, was that you could see through it somewhat because it was made out of glass. Unfortunately, all I could see is bushes and trees when I peered through the glass. _Weird! I wonder if it's all like on the inside._

Miles and I strolled inside the gym, and a part of me anticipated to be barraged with countless, annoying questions from a stranger. _How could I forget? Walter is actually a detective eager to arrest me! _I quickly drowned Walter out of my mind when I took a moment to look around inside the gym. _It's literally like a jungle in here! That's so cool!_ The inside of the greenhouse-like gym was filled with lush vegetation; giant trees shaded us while we waded through the tall grass to find a trainer We walked around for a solid twenty minutes, and couldn't find a soul in here(Although Miles pointed out countless variety of little bug Pokémon crawling around on trees). Eventually we crossed another person amidst the jungle; it was a nerdy-looking kid sprawled out in a lawn-chair typing away on his laptop.

"Hey Blue, talk to this guy. He's the one that signed me up," whispered Miles.

"Hey! Do you work at this gym?" I asked the studious-looking boy. _Man, I hated kids like this back in New Bark. They made me feel like a caveman in the smarts department. The worse part about that is that I'm not dumb; I just don't care about grades. I mean, look how great that did for me anyways._ He didn't respond to me, and continued working intently on his computer. I walked up to his right side, and waited for his response.

"Hey! Can you hear me? I want to sign up for gym match!" I yelled impatiently into this guy's face.

"Huh? You here to take on Milton for the Hive Badge?" the boy asked in a monotonous voice, finally looking up from his laptop.

"Sure am! I'm Blue Wade, by the way. I was yelling at you for a while; were you in the zone or something?" I responded kindly. _I should probably start using a different name since the cops are after me._

"I'm Hubert, and yeah, I was monitoring my Kakuna. It's about to evolve to Beedrill, and I didn't want to miss it shedding. Anyways, Milton has an opening in two weeks from now. You can battle him, then," he replied. _Shedding? That sounds wicked!_

"Cool! Can I take a look?" I asked excited to see whatever an evolution was.

"Uh, so you're battle will be in two weeks," the nerdy looking guy replied, shutting his laptop. _How rude! What a typical nerd._

"Two weeks? That's so far away from now!" I exclaimed. _Miles wasn't exaggerating about the waiting list for this gym leader!_

"Sorry guy. That's how it's been since Milton started running the gym. People have been flocking to witness the 'Pokémon Prodigy' in action; needless to say it's been keeping us incredibly busy," he explained, now typing away on his laptop. _He doesn't seem that busy..._

"Oh! Well if he's a big deal, then I'm super stoked to battle him! But do I need to fight any trainers in order to qualify or anything?" I asked.

"Do you have a gym badge?" he replied looking up.

"Yep!" I said, flashing him my Zephyr Badge.

"Then no battles for you. Your name is Blue Wade, right?" he asked hurrying up the process. _No trainer qualifying battles? Hmm. This is a weird gym._

"Yup!" I replied eagerly.

"Alright, Blue, your battle will be in two weeks from now at two P.M. Don't forget," he finished, and went back to staring at his computer.

"Thanks?" I replied.

"I think we should take that as our exit. See ya Hube," spoke Miles. Miles and I waded through the jungle-like gym and exited only in a mere ten minutes.

"I think he cared about his Kakuna more than he did about signing you up," said Miles with a smirk looking down and behind me as we strolled through Azalea.

"Really? You think so?" I asked in a higher than normal pitch voice hinted with distress. _I hope he signed me up! I don't want to wait longer than two weeks to fight a gym leader!_

"I'm just messing with ya!" he replied, smacking me on the back.

"Oh good one!" I replied still a little confused.

"So what now, Blue? It looks like we're going to be roommates for quite a while. Do you want to do some training together?" asked Miles as we walked around the small town.

"Yeah, I guess so. I hadn't really thought about it much... But training sounds great! I caught a new Pokémon yesterday that I really want to check out," I replied. _Man, I have mixed feelings about this. I would love to train with Miles because he whooped me easily last time we battled, but living with him for two weeks is a whole different story. I don't really have any idea what kind of person he is. He seems really weird overall, though._

"Awesome! I haven't trained my Pokémon in a couple of days, so this will be a great treat for them! I'll take you to a great spot I found; it's only a couple of minutes away from here," Miles said with enthusiasm.

Miles guided me to his favorite training spot. We ran into several trainers along the way, but we refused (Miles did the talking for the most part) their requests for a battle explaining we were training together. The training spot was an open field that was only minutes away from Azalea Town. _I think this is the exact same place I went to earlier._ I released my newly captured giant Pokémon from yesterday, and I promptly scanned it with my pokedex.

"ONIX, ROCK SNAKE POKEMON. IT RAPIDLY BORES THROUGH THE GROUND AT FIFTY MILES PER HOUR BY SQUIRMING AND TWISTING ITS MASSIVE, RUGGED BODY," spoke my pokedex. _I was so right about it being a rock snake! I think I have a great name for it._

"Your name will be Boulderboa!" I declared, running up to my gigantic Pokémon.

The Onix Pokémon coiled up its body, and roared loudly in my face. _Okay, so were not at hugging level of friendship yet. _I backed away from the rock and ground hybrid Pokémon, and stared at it not knowing what to do next.

"Blue! Your Onix is humongous! I think it is easily thirty feet long! That's longer than a full-grown Onix!" yelled Miles over Boulderboa's roar. _It does seem pretty crapping large!_

"That's awesome! But how do I train this thing? I don't think she likes me much!" I replied, worried.

"Do you have any other Pokémon on you? I think it might calm down if it sees other Pokémon you own instead of just you and me. Onix are known for being incredibly hostile Pokémon; it's quite a feat that you captured such a massive one," replied Miles. _Smiley really isn't the best candidate for calming Boulderboa down; I mean, he tries his best to aggravate Berserk all the time. But he's all I got right now, I hope he can help out._

"Thanks! It was a crazy battle. I couldn't really see what was going on; I really thought I was a goner!" I explained while Boulderboa was still bellowing at me.

"I've only got one Pokémon on me right now, and he's not known to be nice. He's a mischievous little Gastly, but hopefully he'll help out," I continued, and then I released Smiley despite my doubts of him possibly making it worse. The gaseous ghost Pokémon greeted me with a sloppy, ghastly lick on the face, and snickered.

"Smiley, can you try to calm Boulderboa down? Please?" I asked my Gastly Pokémon nicely. He winked at me in reply, and disappeared. _Uh-oh! What did that wink mean?_ Then I saw as Smiley reappeared in Boulderboa's massive trailing shadow behind her, and then quickly floated directly into the Onix's face, startling it. _Oh man! This is going to be ugly! Why don't my Pokémon ever listen to me?_

"Miles get ready; I think Boulderboa might lose it!" I whispered as I continued to watch the potential train wreck. But to my surprise, Boulderboa didn't go into a fit of rage from being scared by the little trickster ghost, and smiled. It looked like Smiley was hitting it off with Boulderboa.

I watched in utter amazement as if Smiley was talking to Boulderboa saying that I was a cool guy or something. Boulderboa seemed a little bit more at ease after Smiley showed up, as if another Pokémon made her feel at ease, and I decided to let the two get to know each other better while I had a moment to do the same with Miles.

"Good advice. I'm sorry that B.B. went all nuts on us; it doesn't look like we'll get much training in," I said walking over to Miles who was standing a few feet behind me.

"It's okay, Blue. This is the first time I've seen a real life Onix, so this is still pretty exciting for me. It's not like everyday you get a chance to get crushed by a giant rock behemoth," he replied with a smirk.

"Good point!" I replied laughing. _Miles has a better sense of humor compared to Quimbly and Cas!_

"You know you should probably make an effort to befriend your Onix now that Smiley – That's your Gastly's name right? – has calmed it down," chimed in Miles after we finished laughing. _Man, he's right! Boulderboa isn't roaring anymore._

"Right!" I replied hesitantly. _I don't want to upset it again! _

I walked slowly over to Boulderboa and Smiley; they were relatively close to begin with, but I didn't want to upset or startle Boulderboa by running to him. Smiley was still floating directly in front of the Boulderboa's head; the gaseous Pokémon noticed me and winked without drawing too much attention. _Wow! Who would think a giant rock monster would get a long with a mischievous little ghost? I feel like this is the makings of a crazy friendship. _I was now inches away from Boulderboa, and she had not taken notice of me. _I should pet her. I think that's a nice, small step. _I extended my hand and pet her rocky body. _Wow! That's surprisingly smooth! I thought Boulderboa's body would be extraordinarily rough; I'll have to ask someone about this._

Heavy warm air slapped me back to reality. I looked up, and my Onix was staring down upon me. _She looks like she's anticipating me to do something bad, so she can squash me. _I smiled at the giant rock snake and continued to pet her gently. _I hope it doesn't kill me! Don't freak out, Blue!_ Then, before I knew it, Boulderboa was so relaxed she unwound herself from the coil position and got comfortable, laying out on the grass her head facing me. She was trying to prevent her eyes from shutting. _She's falling asleep! _Within seconds, Boulderboa couldn't fight it anymore and dozed off. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I resisted the urge to scream. I turned around to see it was Miles. _I nearly forgotten he was there!_

"Miles! You startled me!" I whispered.

"Sorry Blue! I just wanted to tell you that you did great with your Onix. I can't believe you lulled it to sleep! One would think that takes a considerable amount of skill to be able to do that. I think you're a lot better Pokémon trainer than you let on," whispered Miles in return.

"Thanks!" I replied quietly, beaming.

"Hey! Return her, and let's get some food," spoke Miles in a low voice. I checked my poke gear and discovered it was past noon. _Chow time!_ I agreed, returned my Pokémon, and we walked back to town.

We ate sandwiches at the very same old-fashioned restaurant we ate breakfast. Afterwards, Miles showed me a bit more of the town; I realized there really wasn't much to the town. _This is going to be a long two weeks! _He told me there was some sort of poke ball maker living here in Azalea somewhere that creates specialty poke balls. What I did notice while we were checking out the town were all the different trainers around town. Some of these kids were incredibly young for any kind of adventure, like seven years old, and others seemed like veteran Pokémon trainers wearing nice clothes and looked different somehow. It's hard to explain, it was like they looked like they were ready for anything. I didn't realize how bad some trainers have it; I spotted one young kid in tattered clothes limping to the Poke Center crying out that his Pokémon was killed in battle. _Wow, I'm so lucky._ _I could have it as bad as some of these kids or worse. _

Then Miles took me back to his special training spot, and we spent the rest of the day training. I solely trained Smiley because I felt like I didn't have great control over Boulderboa yet. His Kirlia (Miles informed me that Kirlia is an evolutions of his Ralts. And she evolved when he fought Hawkeye.) and Smiley were, for the most part, evenly matched – I only say this because Smiley was more cunning than his opponent, but Kirlia's attacks really put the hurt on him. I realized that Smiley was growing stronger as well when he learned a new sneaky attack called Sucker Punch during one of the many practice battles. After eating dinner at the Bamboo Palace once more and visiting the Poke Center, we finally hit the sack. Miles wasn't acting strange like he was when I ran into him yesterday, and I was extremely thankful for that. _I really hope the next two weeks fly by really fast!_

Day Three

I woke up, and nearly forgot where I was. _Ugh! I'm still waiting in Azalea for that match with the gym leader! I've been here only three days! _I got out of bed and didn't see Miles anywhere in the room. _Guess he woke up early to train._ As I was getting ready for the day, I noticed a note was pinned to my shirt;

"Blue,

Hey! Something's come up! I'll see ya in a couple of days or so.

-Miles"

_What? Man! I'm going to be so bored here by myself. _I strapped my backpack on, and headed over to the Poke Center to check on my Pokémon.

"Heya Nurse Glee! So how's my Pokémon?" I asked greeting the nurse at the front desk of the Poke Center.

"Blue! Good to see you this wonderful morning! Good news! You can take your Mankey back; his little arm is all healed up and ready for battle!" she clacked. Nurse Glee pulled out a tray revealing three poke balls for me to take with me today.

"Whoa! No way! Berserk is good to go?" I asked in shock. _I didn't think it would take only a couple of days for him to heal up._

"Yes sir! Your little Mankey is quite the trooper! Here you go!" she replied handing me Berserk's poke ball.

As soon as I grabbed Berserk's poke ball, a flashback of all my memories of him whizzed through my mind. _It feels really good to get Berserk back. I wouldn't ever tell him this because it would go straight to his head, but Berserk really is my strongest Pokémon. I might actually be able to win a match now._

After I inhaled down my breakfast at the always delicious Bamboo Palace, (They have recognized me as a regular customer now.) I headed to Route Thirty-Three to train my Pokémon. _I really need to train Berserk and Boulderboa. I haven't even tried to battle with Boulderboa yet, and I don't want Berserk to get too rusty. Let's see if I can spot a good trainer…_ I thought as I scanned my immediate area for trainers. I only saw bad, novice trainers moping around.

"Hey! You and me, let's go!" I commanded to a young kid I've seen around Azalea before. He looked like crap.

"I-I'll lose!" he cried.

I threw out my poke ball releasing Smiley. He licked me as always, and then floated away from me waiting for his opponent. _He knows the drill. We've gotten pretty good at our routine. _He released the annoying rat Pokémon, Rattata.

"Smiley Lick!" I commanded.

"Rattie! Bite!" the boy ordered.

Smiley floated over to the rat Pokémon, and licked it. The attack didn't faze the normal Pokémon at all, and the Rattata retaliated by biting Smiley. Smiley let out a loud moan, and slowly floated to the ground with his eyes closed.

"Good job! You beat me. If you train hard, your Rattata will get really strong!" I said congratulating my opponent.

"Thanks! That was the first battle I've ever won!" he exclaimed. He looked undeniably happy. I handed him a couple hundred bucks, and he was on his way. _I really hope that win and money does that kid some good; he looks worse off than I've ever been._

"Good work Smiley! You are definitely the Pokémon actor of the year!" I exclaimed.

Smiley floated up seemingly unharmed, and licked my face. _Yuck! I don't think I'll ever get used to that feeling; it's like he's licking through me because he's a ghost – Double gross! _

"Alright Smiley let's go find some trainers!" I shouted thrusting my arm into the air.

In two hours I found a couple of trainers of my caliber down the road. I defeated the first guy, Henry, quite easily, but I'd be lying if I didn't say he wasn't a little bit challenging. Henry's Wooper gave Smiley a run for his money. The other trainer, Victoria, actually bested me on a two Pokémon battle. _One win and one loss, I really can't believe I lost to a girl! That Geodude Pokémon really wrecked on Smiley and Berserk. I don't like giving away money! Okay, next trainer I fight I will actually use Boulderboa and win!_

I walked around Route Thirty-Three in search of one last opponent before going back to Azalea to eat. Then I spotted her; she was a pretty brunette girl with long straight hair, and the odd thing was that she was walking behind me. The only reason why I noticed her was because Smiley scared Berserk, and he leaped off my shoulder backwards. The girl wore a green shirt with a red sash, and short brown shorts. She looked several of years older than me, but that mattered little to me. _This will be a perfect opportunity to fix that loss earlier!_

"Hey! Wanna battle?" I asked greeting the girl. I looked for badges on her, but I didn't spot any. _Ah man! This will probably be a walk in the park; I really wanted a challenge!_

"Oh I don't know…" she replied looking away from me.

"Wait, are you even a trainer?" I asked. _Maybe I mistook her as a trainer; she could just be a resident of Azalea taking a leisurly stroll or something._

"Yeah I am, you twerp! It's so on!" she replied in a frenzy. _Whoa! Looks like I really got her going!_

"Let's do this! Does a two Pokémon battle sound good?" I asked eagerly.

"Yes! Whatever!" she answered quickly.

The girl threw out her first poke ball revealing a three foot tall white horse that had flame trailing on its back from its head to the end of its back forming a flame-like tail. I hurriedly scanned it with my pokedex. "PONYTA, FIRE HORSE POKEMON. ITS HIND LEGS, WHICH HAVE HOOVES THAT ARE HARDER THAN DIAMOND, KICK BACK AT ANY PRESENCE IT SENSES BEHIND IT," spoke my monotone device. _Whoa that is one cool fire Pokémon! Too bad I don't have Jaws with me; he would totally own this Ponyta. I think my best bet is Boulderboa; I have a feeling she's resistant to fire._

I tossed out my poke ball onto the trail releasing the rock behemoth Pokémon. Boulderboa roared fiercely at his opponent with her head high in the air. _At least she isn't roaring at me!_ The Ponyta looked like an ant compared to the size of my Onix Pokémon. The fire horse Pokémon looked frightened.

"Boulderboa use Harden, and then Tackle it!" I ordered.

"Ponyta use Flame Wheel!" my opponent directed.

The enemy Pokémon attacked first, cloaking itself in fire and ramming Boulderboa. The attack seemed to do little damage to Boulderboa, and she proceeded to strengthen her defenses. She closed her eyes, concentrating, then she secreted something all over her body, and her body glistened. Then Boulderboa lunged at the Ponyta headfirst, knocking the fire horse back. She roared as if she was enjoying the battle.

"Use Bind!" I shouted.

My Onix Pokémon rushed over to the dazed Ponyta, and wrapped her body around it. I could only make out Ponyta's little white head sticking out of B.B.'s coil. _Awesome! Ponyta doesn't have a chance! _ Boulderboa squeezed the Ponyta continuously.

"Ponyta! Hang in there! Use Ember on that Onix's face!" the girl commanded.

The fire horse Pokémon spat little flames into Boulderboa's face. This startled the great Onix tremendously, and she let go of the Ponyta. The flamed horse jumped back towards her trainer panting heavily. _I don't think that attack hurt her a lot, but it took her by surprise. I have a feeling this girl really knows how to battle!_ _I'm still gonna win this, though! _Boulderboa blinked hard several times and wiped her face with her tail, and she looked raring to go.

"Boulderboa use Rock Throw!" I ordered.

Boulderboa began swinging her tail, and then released one of the smaller boulders from her tail. The boulder hurdled towards the Ponyta, and it tried to dodge out of the way but to no avail. The boulder crashed into Ponyta's backside as it tried to run from the attack, and Ponyta fell upon the ground unconscious. I saw that the boulder collided into the trunk of a nearby tree. I looked back to Boulderboa, and she had her eyes closed concentrating. Then as if I was witnessing some sort of strange miracle, the boulder she launched flew back into place in Boulderboa's tail. _That was so cool!_

"I won't go down with out a fight!" shouted my opponent.

The brunette girl threw out another poke ball revealing a small, cute red fox Pokémon with a large tail that was arched upwards. _This is one girly-looking Pokémon! _I scanned it with my pokedex; "VULPIX, FOX POKEMON. IF IT IS ATTACKED BY AN ENEMY THAT IS STRONGER THAN ITSELF, IT FEIGNS INJURY TO FOOL THE ENEMY AND ESCAPES." _This little fox looks like a push-over; I totally got this in the bag!_

"Vulpix use Will-O-Wisp!" commanded the trainer.

"Boulderboa use Screech!" I ordered.

My Onix Pokémon let out a high-pitched screech at the Vulpix, and disoriented it. _Wow. I thought she could only roar. It's good to see she has range. _I smiled slightly at my joke.

"Use Bind Boulderboa!" I shouted. _This is it! Match winning move._

Boulderboa extended its tail sweeping in the dazed fox Pokémon into its grasp. The Vulpix squealed in pain as Boulderboa squeezed it. _Not much longer now._

"Vulpix! Use Confuse Ray!" the girl ordered swiftly. _Oh no! Not that again! Last time she got confused she went berserk and collapsed the cave!_

"Boulderboa listen to my voice. It's okay, don't freak out!" I told my Pokémon.

I don't know if it was that she couldn't hear me or what, but Boulderboa went berserk. She threw Vulpix away from her, and roared ferociously.

"Boulderboa calm down!" I shouted.

The giant rock snake Pokémon turned to me, and bellowed. She then whacked me with her tail. The attack knocked me off my feet, and I flew back a couple of feet landing on my right side. I tried to get back up, but then a tree fell on me. _Oof! Boulderboa is out of control! I can't get to her poke ball…_

My eyelids were heavy. I could barely focus on Boulderboa. _I could've stopped this. I'm such a terrible trainer!_ The last thing I saw was the red fire Pokémon that saved me from the Mankeys appear and wrestle Boulderboa to the ground. _Blaziken…?_

Day Five

I awoke to unbearably bright lights. I blinked a couple of times, and the bright, white lights wouldn't fade. _Am I dead? Did my own Pokémon kill me? Dangit! I really wanted to become a Pokémon Master! I should've just returned that stupid Onix when it got confused._

"He's waking up! His eyes are opening!" said someone loudly. _I'm not dead! _

"Well, it's about time, Blue. I hurried back when I heard your Onix got out of control, and nearly killed you," spoke a familiar voice. I rubbed my eyes, and my eyes finally fixed themselves revealing a smirking Miles.

"Miles! I'm alive!" I shouted, raising my arms in the air. Then I felt a sharp pain in my left side.

"Blue you can't be making drastic movements like that – you bruised one of your ribs," spoke Nurse Glee. I looked to her in complete shock.

"I'm in a Poke Center?" I shouted.

"Yes, Blue. We couldn't get you to Violet City hospital; Union Cave has collapsed," the nurse explained calmly. _Oh man. That is not good._

"B-but you're a Pokémon nurse! Y-you didn't o-operate on me did you?" I asked, still on edge.

"Don't worry! We can't really operate on something like that. All we've done is given you pain medicine, and let you rest," answered Nurse Glee, now flipping through a clipboard.

"That's a relief. So when do I get out of here?" I continued to question the nurse.

"Well seeing as you was pretty much knocked out for two days, I'll say another two days of bed and rest," she replied. _I've been in Azalea for five days now!_

"I was out for two days! Whoa! And I have to stay in here for another two more? You gotta be kidding me!" I exclaimed.

"To be honest, Blue, you're going to be hurting for quite sometime even after resting. It's going to take you a while for your body to mend your ribs. Good news is that I can give you pain medicine to make it easier for you!" she replied with a sweet smile.

"That's okay I guess…But what about my Pokémon, Nurse Glee? Boulderboa was on a rampage still after I was knocked out! I think," I asked anxiously.

"We're not too sure what happened. All I know is that someone dropped off an unconscious Onix, (That belonged to you, by the way.) and a thirteen year old boy in front of the Poke Center. Your Onix or Boulderboa as you call it is fine." clarified the accommodating nurse. _I wonder what happened to that girl I was battling. Did she have a Blaziken?_

"So you didn't see a Blaziken or a brunette girl with a red scarf?" I asked eagerly.

"Blaziken? No, I sure didn't, Blue. Those are incredibly rare Pokémon, and we don't normally see those here in Johto. And like I said we didn't see anyone, especially a girl with a red scarf, dropping you off," answered Nurse Glee.

"I brought you these," spoke Miles, pointing to a stack of books upon the nightstand on my right.

"What are these?" I asked uneasily. _Don't tell me these are books! This is why I'm not in school; I hate reading!_

"Those, my friend, are Pokémon books. I thought you could use something to do while you're resting for the next couple of days. I think you'll find something to your liking; there are books about battling, about the different types of Pokémon, and a lot more. I had to take all these out of my P.C…" answered Miles excitedly. _I knew he was a nerd!_

"P.C.! That reminds me, Miles, could you use my pokedex to get to my account on a P.C., and email my Mom what happened. I think she'd like to know that I'm okay, and stuff," I said interrupting Miles rambling about his books.

"Sure thing, kid," he replied. He then took my pokedex out of my backpack, and left the room. Nurse Glee followed him shortly afterwards asking me if I needed anything. _Ugh. The next couple of days are going to be so boring!_

Day Seven

"No Mom, I'm not dying. I'm recovering from bruised ribs," I explained letting out a sigh.

"Well, I just don't understand why your own Pokémon would attack you! I thought Pokémon trainers had control over their Pokémon!" retorted my mother.

"It's hard to explain; it was both of our faults. Boulderboa loses her cool easily and does bad things like that, and I don't have great control over her. I guess, I'm not that great of a trainer, Mom," I explained.

"If this isn't working out for you Blue, I understand! Why don't you come home? I miss you terribly! I'm so worried about you!" buzzed Mom concerned.

"Don't you understand? This is what I want to do! I want to experience the world! I want to be a Pokémon Champion. You will be proud of me… And more importantly I want to avenge Dad! I'll find Cas somewhere out there, and he'll get his!" I replied passionately.

"I still think you're too young to be a Pokémon trainer, but I.."

"Mom, I got to go! Nurse Glee is coming back, and I'm getting out of here today. I'll talk to you soon! Bye!" I said pressing the hang up the phone button on my poke gear.

With a little help from Miles and Nurse Glee I was able to get out of bed. _That was more torturous than talking to Mom. Man, she had so many questions! _

"I can't believe I'm finally getting out of here! It feels like I've spent a year lying on that bed!" I exclaimed.

"You're right! We got to get you back in trainer-shape! We're off to go training after this!" replied Miles.

"I'm not out of shape!" I retorted swiftly, frowning. Nurse Glee and Miles proceeded to laugh. _But I do only have a week left to prepare before I take on this 'Pokémon Prodigy' gym leader._

"Hey! Hey! Let's get out of here!" I shouted ceasing the laughter. I thanked Nurse Glee for taking great care of me, and I led Miles out of the Poke Center. _I've been waiting for days to do that! _

I took a second to breathe in my new found freedom. _I don't think outside air has ever been so amazing. The afternoon sky was a crisp blue with a few wandering clouds. I looked out towards Route Thirty-Three, and marveled at the sea of trees. Wow, I miss being outside! I don't ever want to be stuck in a situation like that again!_

We walked out to Miles' sweet training spot, and I released three of my Pokémon. _I wish Jaws would be healed already! I really feel for him after spending a couple of days in there!_ All of them except Boulderboa were jumping on me, hugging me, and licking me. I looked over to Boulderboa to see she was looking right back at me sheepishly, and then looked back to the ground. _She knows she did wrong; I need to forgive her and let her know she needs to obey me. _With Berserk sitting upon my left shoulder and Smiley hovering above me we confronted Boulderboa.

"Boulderboa, it's okay. I know you didn't mean to hurt me; you lost control," I said calmly, petting her tail. She laid out on the ground with her head now merely inches away from mine. Then she licked me with a massive, slobbery, rocky black tongue.

"Yuck!" I shouted. _I can't believe she took a page out of Smiley's book! _

"Haha! Your Onix licked you!" spoke out Miles in between laughs. He was laying on the ground laughing.

I did my best to ignore him, but I couldn't deny his infectious laugh. His laugh sounded like someone starting up a broken car – "huh huh huh". I joined Miles, and soon my Pokémon did, too. Berserk's and Smiley's laugh sounded like snickering, and Boulderboa's laugh was a very low sounding chuckle. _My side hurts so much from laughing, but I can't stop!_

After we shared a solid twenty minute laugh, we did some serious training. Miles and I battled each other, but to Miles' surprise and dismay I beat him. He told me he thought I would be too rusty for battle, but I informed Miles that all his books enlightened me with all sorts of new information that helped me win. I learned a lot more about the different types of Pokémon attacks; it allows the trainer to pinpoint and exploit the opponent's Pokémon weakness easier - It's a lot smarter fighting.

We headed back to Azalea around five o'clock, mostly because we were starved after a long day of training. On our way to the Bamboo Palace, (Miles told me he never cooks, and relies solely on other people's cooking. _I think I can live like that, too!_) we spotted three men dressed in black harassing a middle-aged man wearing an ornate white and red robe. It looked like they were bullying the old man for money or something. _I hate it when people do stuff like that! That's why all those kid Pokémon trainers have it so rough._ I decided step in the middle of this, and Miles followed.

Miles and I threw out a poke ball between the man and the three goons in black. Miles' poke ball released a six foot tall grass Pokémon called Tropius that looked like a reptilian-tree hybrid with long, massive leaves for wings on its back. I released Boulderboa my biggest and most intimidating Pokémon. This completely took the goons by surprise, and ran away from the scene. When they were far enough, we returned our Pokémon, and asked if the middle aged man if he was okay. _That went exceptionally well! I didn't think those guys would freak out so easily!_

"I'm fine, I'm fine. That was mighty courageous of you defending…an old man!" exclaimed the still startled man in a raspy voice, stepping away from our massive Pokémon.

"Yeah, that was nothing, sir. I'm used to taking down cowards like that. For whatever reason those thugs dressed in black are usually bad news, so be mindful of them next time, oldie," I replied coolly. Miles returned his Pokemon, and stifled a laugh. I returned Boulderboa, as well.

"Well, I think we'll be heading off – Is there anything else we could do for you, sir?" chimed in Miles, stepping out in front of me.

"No, no, there's nothing else. I really don't know what those…thugs wanted with me, but I'm sure thankful you two came to my rescue," replied the old man wiping off smudges his robe-thing.

"Alright! Remember to be careful around those guys dressed in black, old man! We'll see ya around!" I said, waving goodbye. We turned around and began walking over to the Bamboo Palace.

"W-wait! What are your names?" asked the old gentleman hesitantly.

"I'm Blue, and this is Miles! See ya!" I yelled back at him. _Smart move. Old people have bad hearing._

We walked to the Bamboo Palace to partake in our usual dinner. _Dang! It feels so good to get out of the Poke Center to eat normal people food!_

"So what was up with that oldie wearing a robe? It looked like women's clothes!" I blurted out, chuckling in between bites of a huge hamburger.

"Oh Blue, you're lack of knowledge is limitless isn't it? That is called a kimono. It is traditional dress ware," answered Miles.

"Huh? Traditional?" I replied, more confused than ever.

"It's like for special occasions and stuff. You've never seen a kimono or worn one before?" asked Miles, looking rather shocked.

"Hmm. I really don't know. When we moved to New Bark our family didn't go out much or visit any of our relatives, so I guess it's a no, I hadn't seen a kimono before," I replied a couple seconds after thinking about it. _I wonder why that is. It was probably Dad; he didn't have much time for anything besides work._

We finished our meal, and headed to the Poke Center to get some shut-eye in. We spoke to Nurse Glee briefly, and gave her our Pokémon to heal.

"Miles, don't sleep in my bed, okay?" I asked my roommate jokingly once we entered our room. _I don't want to wake to any more surprises!_

"Aww, really?" Miles replied, frowning.

"Yeah! I don't live like that, man. It's weird!" I admonished.

"I'm just kidding with you, Blue! I wasn't planning on it. I'm not drunk, so chances are nothing weird will happen between us," Miles explained, smirking.

"What do you mean by drunk?" I questioned Miles, scratching my head.

"Oh you know; drinking too much beer and acting dumb," he replied then yawning loudly. He tucked himself into his bed. _Drinking too much beer makes you dumb? Good thing I don't drink beer. And why would you want to do that? _

Day Eleven

I awoke from bright light shining through a few of the misshapen blinds in our room. Unfortunately for me the light lands directly onto my face if I'm sleeping belly-up. I rubbed my eyes, and looked for Miles. He wasn't there, and he didn't pin a note on my shirt – That's become his thing when he has to go away or has something to tell me. _I guess he's getting a head start in training; his match with Milton is tomorrow after all. I can't blame him; he really wants to get out of this town A.S.A.P. He's been waking up early to train for several days; I wish he would wake me up, too. My Pokémon and I could go for more training; especially from a trainer as good as him. I'm really excited to see his Pokémon in action, and to see if 'Pokémon Prodigy' is really all that terrific._ I dressed quickly, and barreled downstairs to the front of the Poke Center to talk to Nurse Glee.

"Hiya Nurse Glee!" I said to the nurse at the front.

"Hey Blue! Your Pokémon are in great shape! I, also, have a surprise for you – You're going to flip out! For reasons unknown, your Totodile has had a fast recovery, and is done healing up! He's ready to go with you!" replied the pretty nurse, squealing at the end with excitement. _Jaws is ready to go with me? No way!_

"You're not playing a joke on me, right?" I asked, tersely. _Miles lies to me all the time about little things and I believe him. I know Nurse Glee isn't Miles, but I really wouldn't like it if she's messing with me._

"Of course not, Blue! Here's your Pokémon," she replied, taken aback. The Poke Center nurse handed me a tray with four poke balls, I picked up the poke balls one by one placing them upon my poke ball belt. I reached the last one, and I knew it was Jaws. His poke ball had seen the most action, and still looks more weathered than the rest. I pointed the poke ball to the ground, and pressed the center button releasing Jaws. _It's really him! He looks great!_ Jaws was still donning my Dad's sunglasses. I crouched down, and hugged him really tight.

"Don't ever scare me like that again, okay?" I whispered to Jaws. The little blue crocodile Pokémon looked up at me with comforting sincerity, and I knew we had an understanding. I had to hold back my tears; I really missed the little guy. He looked skinnier than I remember. _I got a lot of training to do with Jaws; I hope he hasn't forgotten his attacks!_ I kindly thanked Nurse Glee for everything, and Jaws and I walked to Mile's favorite training spot. I spotted Miles some distance away; he had pitted Tropius against his Zangoose. It looked like a heated battle, although, Zangoose was really whooping Tropius. Miles called off the Pokémon sparring session when he noticed me with Jaws.

"Hey! You got Jaws back! That's great news!" welcomed Miles.

"Hey! Thanks! I'm so excited to have him back. Have you eaten?" I replied.

We decided to have an early lunch, and after we trained our Pokémon until around three o'clock. Miles told me that he wanted to pick up some items for his gym battle tomorrow at the Poke Mart, and I tagged along happily.

Afterward, we headed out to do some more training. Miles told me it would be a real tough session because he really wanted to win his match tomorrow. As we were leaving Azalea we passed a familiar face, an old man wearing a robe. _Where have I seen that guy before? He's probably someone I've seen at the Bamboo Palace; tons of old folk wearing girly-looking robes eat there. _I didn't bother asking Miles about him.

"Hey! You two! Blue and Miles!" called out the old man. We turned around to see a panting old man.

"Oh! Hey, old man! What's going on?" I said greeting the familiar stranger. _I feel like I should know this guy._

"You don't remember me? I'm Kurt. You shooed thugs away for me several days ago..," replied the man, Kurt, in a gritty, hoarse voice. _I remember now! That happened the first day I was able to get out of the Poke Center. God, what a great day!_

"Yes, of course, sir. Can we help with you something?" spoke Miles. He then glared back at me halting my nostalgic moment. I looked back to Kurt awaiting his reply, and noticed he had a black eye on his left.

"Well, I think you two are just who I need, seeing as we don't have police in this town of ours. It regards to those ruffians who nearly assaulted me several days back. They came back to pay me a visit in my house last night, and things have gone to hell. Those delinquents work for an organization called Midnight. They are a horrible group of ruffians, but they usually they reside in bigger cities. Unfortunately for me, they've come to Azalea to seek me, and ruin my life. You have got to help me!" explained Kurt in incredible speed.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Like I was saying, they busted into my house, (They broke down my front door!) and demanded me to create special poke balls for them. I, of course, declined their request because I knew of their reputation, and that's when things went to hell. They decided to try to convince me by beating me - Luckily my granddaughter was hiding in her room during this. Despite the pain, I told them I wouldn't make my poke balls for such scum. Then they did the worst! They took my sweet Sandra from me! Then they handed me a list demanding all sorts of poke balls they desired. And directed me to return to them in the Slowpoke Well with all the custom made poke balls, and only then will they return my granddaughter to me. Then they slammed a two by four on my head, for good measure I think. I just now awoke from my concussion. I don't have any Pokemon, and I thought you two seemed like two able Pokémon trainers fit for helping an old man," explained the old gentleman. _Dang, that is so messed up. I bet Cas would run with a gang like that. I think we should help Kurt out._

"Why don't you just make them the poke balls sir, if you don't mind me asking?" asked Miles.

"They're after this one ball in particular I'm known for making; it's called a multi ball. It can hold up to twenty Pokemon in one poke ball. Can you imagine the destruction those thugs would be capable with that kind of technology? I cannot allow it! If you are not able to help..." he replied.

"We'll do it, Kurt. We'll bring back your girl. Count on it," I said effortlessly.

"Thank you so much! I can't even begin-"

"Don't sweat it, old man. This kind of stuff makes me so mad; I can't stand people that would do something so messed up like that," I replied angrily.

"I hope to see you soon! I would go with you, but I have no Pokemon to defend myself. I wish you the best of luck!" said Kurt beaming.

"See ya, old man!" I replied.

"If we don't come back by tomorrow with Sandra, visit the Pokémon gym or Poke Center. I think they'll find someone to help you," spoke Miles gravely.

We turned around and made our way towards Slowpoke Well. _I passed it many times on my way back from training; it's an underground cave-like place a little ways away from Azalea. I never really wanted to go in there because it looked kind of creepy, but I'll set those feelings aside for this._

"Blue, that was bold of you to accept Kurt's request. You realize we could easily get murdered during this adventure, right? And all I really wanted to do today was get some training in for my match tomorrow..." spoke Miles breaking the silence.

"Yeah, I know. It's just I don't stand for that kind of evil, man. I've been through some absolutely horrible stuff, and I know how Kurt is feeling right now. If there's anything I could do to help him, I'll eagerly help. I've trained my Pokemon hard, and I trust them. I know they can protect me. I, also, know you're probably just as good of a trainer as me, and we'll stop this. Let's go stomp on some bad guys!" I exclaimed keeping eye to eye with Miles.

"Ha! I like that! You sound prepared for this, but there's something I want you to keep in mind. This could go down really badly, someone could die. These guys sound like they might use guns and or Pokemon, so expect the worst. Don't let your guard down, Blue," replied Miles with a comforting smile.

"Yeah...I guess I never really thought about that. Well, don't worry. I don't plan on killing any one," I said, smirking. Miles chuckled.

"Believe me, I don't want to either. We need to just focus on getting that girl out of there A.S.A.P., and knockout a few that disagree," he replied looking out toward our path.

"Sounds like a plan! Let's do this!" I shouted.

We strategized as we walked closer our destination. As we reached Slowpoke Well, we spotted a pair of goons wearing black on look out. _Those must be bad guys! They're wearing all black! _We hid behind some nearby bushes, and watched the two as they held their post.

"Blue, we should try to either sneak by these guys or take them out quietly. Seeing as their blocking the entrance I think the latter will be our only option," whispered Miles.

"Yeah, okay. So what now?" I replied quietly.

"Hmm...give me a second," replied Miles. As he contemplated a strategy, he placed his right hand on his chin. _We should use our quick Pokemon like Berserk, and stealthily knock out those bad guys! They wouldn't have a chance! _

"I got it! We'll put them asleep with my Kirlia's Hypnosis attack, tie them up, and hid them behind some bushes," spoke Miles.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" I replied excitedly.

"Did you hear something?" asked one of the guards. Miles proceeded to hit me in the arm, and told me to shush. _Whoops! _One of the guards was leaving the entrance, and started ooking for trespassers.

"Alright, here goes nothing," whispered Miles. He released his ballerina-looking Psychic Pokémon, and instructed it to perform Hypnosis on the guard when he gets closer to us. In a couple of moments that felt like hours, the Midnight goon crept close enough, and Kirlia used her sleep-inducing attack. The Pokémon closed her eyes intently, and then I watched as the thug suddenly fell to the ground. Miles and I quickly dragged him us, so his buddy wouldn't find him. We then heard a crackle and a muffled voice. _That must be other guy's walkie-talkie or something. _

"Hey Bill! Come in, Bill. Bill, you there?" buzzed the downed guard's walkie-talkie. _Oh crap!_

"Uh, yeah, Bill here. I'm just, uh, you know on look-out," I responded instinctively in a low, dumb-sounding voice. Miles was glaring at me with the angriest eyes I've seen in quite sometime. I shrugged, not knowing what else we could have done.

"Bill? Hey Bill! Where are ya?" called out the other guard, as he headed in our direction.

We waited surprisingly shortly for the other guard to come our way, and was befallen the same fate as his friend. _I'm glad he decided not to call up for backup. This was a really good plan!_

"Alright, so what now? I mean, I don't have any rope on me. How are we going to tie these guys up? If they wake up suddenly, we're going to be in loads of trouble," I asked finally standing up.

"I got that covered, too. I'll just use Tropius' vines to tie them up. They should be in a deep slumber for at least three hours, so I don't think these guys will be bothering us later," explained Miles. He returned Kirlia and released Tropius. He directed the massive tree-like Pokémon to wrap the goons tightly with its vines, and it promptly did so. _I guess it's time to adventure in the cave! I'm kinda excited!_

"Ted. Come in, Ted. Did you find Bill? What's going on?" buzzed the second guard's walkie-talkie as Miles was returning Tropius.

"Yeah, no problems here," replied Miles. _Ha! I wouldn't think he would've been so bold._

"Alright, see you in half an hour," crackled the walkie-talkie.

"Woo! That was a close one Miles! Good save!" I exclaimed, wiping my forehead.

"You're telling me! I didn't even try to talk in a different voice or anything. I think we really lucked out! Hurry let's get into that cave, and save that girl!" he replied.

We sneaked into the entrance of Slowpoke Well, and made our descent into the darkness. _It's like an underground cave in here! Man, I hate caves!_ Miles took lead, and I did my utmost to keep up with him – I held onto the back of his shirt when I heard eery moans echoing throughout the well. _This place feels scarier than that stupid Union Cave! God, I hate caves!_ As we carefully infiltrated Midnight's base, I developed a panging headache. It was hard to focus on anything except the throbbing pain in my head. I stopped following Miles for a second to try to shake off this headache.

Complete darkness.

"_Ah! We, the cave-dwelling Pokémon, here in Slowpoke Well – Not much of a well, more of a cave with few small bodies of water collected – have been expecting you, Blue Slade. You will help all mankind and Pokémon-kind alike, yet you only worry about getting your next gym badge. How curious that you've been destined; one would expect someone more mature. I digress, you have journeyed into here, in this well, my home, to be guided towards to your goal," spoke something in a deep voice methodically. _

_ "A-Are you an Unown?" I asked._

_ "Not quite, I am a Slowking Pokémon named Hakeel. My kin, the Slowpokes, and I are in great peril in this well; the enigmatic Midnight has stationed themselves in here. They have begun slaying my clan for our tails! We are a delicacy to certain fiends. This will be your first trial against Midnight; be strong! Do not be frightened; for you know the key to victory," it answered slowly._

_ "What is this? Trials? Does have something to do with Zapdos?" I asked frantically._

_ "Ah! Oddly enough you are catching on quickly; I took you to be dimmer than a new-born Slowpoke. Yes Midnight is a sinister human organization that will…_

**BANG!**

"Wh-what was that?" I asked sitting straight up, jolted back into reality.

"Blue! You're awake! Thank Arceus! I have no clue what happened, but I was talking to you and I realized that you weren't behind me! Then I heard the gunshot! Freaked out, I backtracked a little bit, and I found you passed out on the floor. I was freaking out, man! I thought you..uh..got..uh... gotted!" explained Miles helping me up.

"Whoa. This is super weird. I had a horrible headache when we entered here, and then I closed my eyes – only for just a moment – and then I was talking to some Pokémon in my head or something like that. I honestly don't know if it was a dream or what. Let's hurry up and get that girl out of here!" I replied, looking around expecting to spot the mind-speaking Slowking or a thug with a gun throughout the entire conversation.

"Uh, okay. Yeah, let's get this over with," said Miles with a concerned look on his face.

"Wait, are you telling me you didn't hear voices or anything?" I said to Miles as he turned around.

"Yeah, sure did, Blue. I heard voices briefly as I was visiting Crazy Town, population you," he retorted as we began walking. He chuckled at his own joke.

"Oh very funny, Miles! I'm being really serious!" I shouted. Miles then turned to me, and covered my mouth with his hand. I tried to say what, but I could only manage a mumbled version instead.

"Shh. I hear footsteps," whispered Miles. He removed his hands from my face, and signaled to me to move to the side of the cave. We crept up to the one of the corners that lead to a narrow path. Miles stuck out his head to sneak a peek.

"See anything?" I whispered.

"You won't believe it. Beyond this narrow path is like a base or a lab or something like that. Midnight has fully functioning lights, and other equipment set up in there," he whispered back.

"Crap! There go our efforts for sneaking the girl in and out of here!" I exclaimed quietly.

"Damn! Boss was right! There _are_ intruders in here!" sneered a stranger stepping out right in front of us.

"Un-freaking-believable! There's nothing Boss doesn't know!" exclaimed another burlier guy dressed in black.

"Yeah, yeah. We'll tell Boss all about it when we finish up here," said another man. _Jeez! Three of them? I wonder how they can tell each other apart. They all wear black, wear those cool visor/hats, and have cool hairdos. _

As soon as the last guy finished speaking, Miles punched him hard in the gut – The guy hunched over from the blow – and he ran into the narrow path. _What the heck? Why did he do that? I can't take on these three by myself!_

"Blue! Don't freak out! I'm going after the girl. I'm leaving Tropius to block the passage, and he'll help out only if you need it. You can do this! Don't use your Onix, it might crash this place!" Miles yelled. _Miles believes in me. It's me versus three ugly thugs. Thankfully my Pokémon can help me out!_

"Ted! Shit, man. I can't believe you let yourself get sucker punched like that!" said the first guy. The second guy laughed hysterically, like a mad man. _His laugh creeps me out. _

"Shuddap Lenny! Let's take down this kid, and then that Tropius or whatever," replied Ted who looked furious. The second man was still laughing hysterically and even harder after what the third man said. _Do they enjoy hurting people?_

Before I knew it all the dim well was illuminated briefly by the release of three Rattatas. _Not Rattatas! Of course these lame-os would have such lame Pokémon!_

I released Smiley, Jaws, and Berserk immediately. Berserk and Smiley looked excited for a battle, and Jaws looked surprisingly weary.

"That's all ya got, kid? Boys, release all your Pokémon. Let's make this quick. I want to return the favor to the other guy," said Ted with a sly smile on his face. _More Pokémon? _

The cave was briefly illuminated once more, and revealed one more Rattata, two Zubats, and an Ekans. _Oh crap! This is going to be tough! _The second man began laughing madly once more.

"Sic 'em," ordered Lenny. All of the opposing Pokémon charged us, and I tried my best to get out of the fray and to make a game plan. The four Rattatas lunged headlong into the battle, and attacked my Pokémon ferociously, the Zubat duo were shrieking and disorientating my Pokémon, and the Ekans was shooting some kind of gunk at my Pokémon. Smiley was having the easiest job dodging most of the attacks because he melded into the darkness of the well easily and reappearing to attack. The other two were having a harder time dealing with the chaotic battle. The Rattatas were wearing down on Jaws despite how weak they were, and the Zubats performed aerial attacks on Berserk with relative ease. _I'm losing already! I have got to get this under control! I can't let down Old Man._

"Smiley! Focus on the Zubats! Use Confuse Ray to disorient them, and finish them off with Night Shade attacks. Berserk! Lay the Rattatas to waste! I know there are four of them, but you're super strong against normal Pokémon! Use Karate Chops, Low Kicks, and Seismic Tosses on them only. Dodge their attacks! Jaws! I know you're not as nimble as Berserk, but do your best at dodging the Rattatas' attacks, too! Use Water Gun on that Ekans, and Bite any oncoming Rattatas!" I ordered as swiftly as I could.

My Pokémon tried their best to stick to my strategy. The Rattatas were more than a handful for Jaws and Berserk to deal with, mostly because there were so many of them. Meanwhile up in the air, from what I could see, Smiley released a duo of rapidly spinning lights around the bat Pokémon. He successfully confused them with Confuse Ray attack and the bat duo were shrieking madly, and flying around in circles. _I really want to laugh at that, but I got to focus._

I returned back to what was going on with Berserk and Jaws. The Ekans in the rear of the Rattatas successfully launched several long-distance attacks on both of my Pokémon. It looked like they were covered in slime. _I really hope that doesn't hinder their fighting ability! _One of the Rattatas went in for a tackle on Jaws, and he narrowly moved out of the way of the tackle and biting the small rat Pokémon as it passed by him. Jaws threw the rat Pokémon off to the left of the cave. _One down, six to go. _Just as Jaws launched the Rattata, another one came in and tackled him from behind. Jaws fell down from the attack, but it didn't look like he was hurt too bad. Suddenly, Berserk jumped into the scene, picked up the purple rat, jolted into the air, and plummeted back into the ground using the rat Pokémon as a cushion for his landing. _Seismic Toss is so cool! Two down, five to go._

I looked up for Smiley, and saw him snickering as the two Zubats were no fighting each other in complete chaotic confusion.

"Finish them off, Smiley! This is serious! Night Shade now!" I ordered sternly, despite how funny it was to see the Zubats fly around in circles.

The cave became darker suddenly, even more than I could imagine, and then it went back to normal. I looked to where I last saw the Zubats, and they weren't there. I saw them on the ground motionless. _Nice! One hit K.O!_ _Four down, and three to go._

"Good work, Smiley! Now fight the Ekans! Do whatever it takes!" I ordered, cheering on the creepy little gaseous ghost Pokémon. _It's a shame that ghost type attacks don't faze normal Pokémon! I'll have to thank Miles for those Pokémon books!_

I turned my attention back to Jaws. He was now up from the tackle, and fighting one of the Rattatas head on. They were going back and forth dodging and attacking. I found Berserk finishing another Rattata with a mighty rib-breaking Karate Chop to its side. After it was down, he frantically jumped on it several times. _Not cool. I understand the Rattata hatred, but that is way over the top._

"Berserk! Enough! Help Jaws! Fight the last Rattata!" I directed.

Berserk stopped and focused on the last Rattata. I almost felt bad for it; the little rat Pokémon looked scared taking on both Jaws and now Berserk. Berserk performed a fierce Karate Chop on it while it dodged Jaws' Scratch attack. _Six down, and one to go._

"Good job, you two! Now help take down that Ekans!" I ordered, encouragingly.

I looked for Smiley tormenting Ekans, but I couldn't spot him. Then I saw him; he was barely floating around trying to reach me. _Oh no! What happened?_ I returned him back to his poke ball, and let my other two Pokémon fight Ekans. The purple snake Pokémon was coiled up waiting for my Pokémon to make the first move. Berserk made the first move, leaping above it, and facing it from behind. _Smart move. _Then the Ekans made a lunge towards Jaws.

"Jaws use Water Gun!" I ordered.

The water attack hit the snake's face dead-on, but it didn't slow it down at all. Then, Berserk grabbed the Ekans' tail, and performed Seismic Throw. However on the downfall, the snake entangled itself on Berserk and was biting him during the downfall. After the dust cleared, both Ekans and Berserk were out cold. Berserk was a bloody mess, riddled with bite marks. _I hope he's okay!_

"No way! Are you some kind of ace Pokémon trainer or something?" shouted Lenny angrily.

"Nah, I'm just real good mister," I replied with a smirk.

"Well, that's too bad about the Pokémon. But I think we can handle killing a Totodile and a snot-nosed brat!" declared Ted. The second guy began cackling once more. All three of the men drew small knives and pointed them towards me.

"Not a chance!" I shouted. I released Boulderboa, and she bellowed savagely. The second guy stopped laughing, and all three of them stood still big-eyed and jaw-dropped.

"I didn't sign up for this shit! I'm out of here!" exclaimed Lenny. He then ran past Boulderboa, and out of the cave leaving behind his comrades and their downed Pokémon.

"Yeah, me too…" said Ted shortly afterward the first guy's departure. The other two ran out quickly leaving behind their Pokémon.

"Cowards!...Good job, Boulderboa. I knew you'd scare them!" I returned all my Pokémon, and sped off to meet up with Mile's Tropius. _What a fun battle! I should hurry to see how Miles is doing._ I flew through the narrow passage with haste, and carelessly bumped into the walking-tree Pokémon. I stumbled backwards and fell to the ground.

"Oof! Is that you, Tropius?" I called out to the darkness. ThePokémon snorted upon recognizing me. I stood back up, and dusted myself off.

"Oh thank Arceus! I thought I was trapped in this stupid cave! Caves suck! Let's go find Miles, Tropius!" I said. Tropius grunted, and slowly moved forward. I followed the slow-moving Pokémon for nearly thirteen minutes until we reached a brightly lit, wider opening. I squeezed past the massive grass Pokémon to get a better view. Bright light illuminated the expansive area revealing several cots, lab equipment, lockers, and weapons. I heard a crash, and my eyes were drawn to Miles' Zangoose crashing through a wall. The crash resulted in dust filling the room. _Where's Miles? Is he actually losing?_

"Miles!" I called out hysterically running into the dust cloud.

"Blue! You're here! Take Sandra and get out of here! This guy is crazy good! I'll hold him off – Don't worry! I'll catch up later!" shouted Miles throwing out another poke ball in the war-torn area. _Run? He wants me to run after taking down a room full of bad guys and bad Pokémon? No way! We can defeat this guy! _

"I can help! We can beat this thug together!" I shouted as the dust settled. I could determine what was going on: A wealthy looking man donning a dark brown sports coat and a full beard sat in a chair to the far left, three fearsome dog-like unknown Pokémon were guarding the gentleman, Miles was clearing rubble off his Zangoose near a prison cell, and his two other Pokémon, one large, chubby, brown, sluggish-looking ape with a furry white chest was laying on his side and the other his psychic Pokémon Kirlia, covered a young brunette girl cowering on the ground.

"Team Cerberus strike down the boy," spoke the intimidating stranger coldly. All three dog Pokémon slowly turned to me, and then lunged at me. I closed my eyes, and crossed my arms peparing for the worst. I opened my eyes at the sound of a large crash; I was standing next to the young girl. I looked over to where I was standing to see the all dark dog Pokémon dazed from pouncing into the rock wall behind me. _Kirlia must've teleported me or something! Talk about great save!_ I ran over to Miles and now standing Zangoose. The black and red dog Pokémon with horns and yellow and blue dog Pokémon snarled at us.

"What's the plan, Miles?" I asked with a smile. _They might be strong, but we're stronger!_

"Blue, I'm not joking, you have **got** to get out of here. This guy, Talbot, is way out of your league. I'm going to stall these two, but you've got to take the girl and run!" he whispered.

"Ha! If you do succeed in escaping me, boy, I'll ensure Midnight kills every single Slowpoke in this well!" spoke the still sitting man with a horrible, twisted smirk.

"You're the one who killed Hakeel!" I shouted. _The gunshot was fired at the Slowking while he speaking to me. That jerk!_

"The Slowking? Oh yes, of course. I had been looking for it for quite sometime in this Arceus-forsaken well; its tail shall fetch me a nice sum," he replied laughing maniacally. The three dog Pokémon team moved back to their master, awaiting their orders.

"Hey-hey, Blue! Focus here, buddy! I'm gonna hold him and his evil hounds off for a second, and you take a break for it with Sandra, okay?" whispered Miles once more.

"But, what about you?" I shouted. _This is so unfair! The Hakeel Slowking thing told me to save his Slowpokes, and Miles wants me to beat it? _

"I'll be fine, believe me. Please make sure Sandra will be okay; I'd hate to see Kurt have a heart attack," he replied with a smirk.

"Slaking use Rock Tomb around them! Run now, Blue!" ordered Miles.

At the moment Miles opened his mouth, I ran over to the young child, took her hand, and dashed towards the exit. _I really want to look back, but I'm scared to see something bad. _I heard a terrible loud crash, but focused on the faint light guiding me out of the creepy well and holding onto Sandra.. Minutes passed like hours, and we passed through the cave.

"Crap! That was crazy!" I exclaimed in between deep breaths.

"D-d-d-did my grampa send you to save me?" stuttered the still scared girl.

"Yeah, he did. He's really worried about you, but don't worry he hired the two best trainers in the world to rescue you. And if do say so myself, we did an excellent job doing so," I replied regaining my cool composure.

"Can you bring me to him, p-p-please?" asked the young girl. _I guess she's still scared. I really need to get back in Slowpoke Well to see if Miles is okay._

"I'll tell you what, let's race to your grandpa's! I challenge you to a race!" I exclaimed.

"Uh, okay," she replied.

"See ya, there!" I shouted as I darted off. I looked behind me as the girl struggled to keep up with me. I slowed down a bit to make it seem fair for her. In no time we reached Kurt's beat down house, (Sandra beat me by mere inches) and stepped through the door-less entrance.

"Kurt?" I called out as we rambled through the shambles of their home.

"Grampa?" Sandra called out.

"Sandra? Oh, my! Thank Arceus!" blabbered the old man between long pauses as he hugged his granddaughter. _Is he weeping?_

"Hey Kurt, I hate to rush your moment, but I have got to get back to the Slowpoke Well..." I said softly after I tapped him on the shoulder.

"Thank you so much! Words cannot describe what this means to me!" Kurt exclaimed letting go of Sandra and shaking my hand excitedly.

"You're welcome. I'm gonna get going now. I'll see ya around!" I said, then heading out.

"Come by if you need anything, Blue!" he shouted. _Slowpokes! Didn't Kurt say something about a special poke ball capable of holding many Pokémon?_

I turned around, and asked; "Didn't you have some special poke ball that could contain many Pokémon at once?"

"Why, yes of course! The multi-ball! What about it, Blue?" he replied holding Sandra's hand..

"Do you think I could borrow one? I did rescue your granddaughter after all!" I asked with a big smile.

"Yes, yes of course. I'll go get it for you. I trust you know what you're doing with it?" he replied, then shuffled off to a small safe. He retrieved an abnormally wide purple poke ball from the safe, and placed it in my hands.

"Here you go, young man. There are probably a couple of things you should know about using this special poke ball…" started Kurt.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! I don't really have time for lessons, I gotta hightail it out of here!" I shouted. I decided to release Boulderboa, and ride her back to Slowpoke Well. _She's faster than me anyways!_

As we arrived to the well, I looked for Miles or even the strange bearded man named Talbot. Neither was in sight, and I began to worry about Miles. I returned B.B., and entered the well. As I walked through the well cautiously anticipating bumping into a Midnight thug, and heard splashes in the far distance of the second area of the well. To the left of the area I was standing upon there was what looked like, a small body of shimmering water. _Miles? I didn't imagine that, right?_

I crept closer to check out what the splashing sound came from. An unknown creature slowly pulled itself out of the water, and lethargically crawled near me. _That's definitely not Miles. I can't quite tell what it is, though. Pokedex time!_ I pulled out my trusty red Pokémon encyclopedia, and it scanned the mysterious Pokémon.

"SLOWPOKE, DOPEY POKEMON. A SWEET SAP LEAKS FROM ITS TAIL'S TIP. ALTHOUGH NOT NUTRITIOUS, THE TAIL IS PLEASANT TO CHEW ON," spoke the monotone Pokedex. _I found the Slowpokes! Awesome! I bet their sweet tails is why Midnight wants_ _those Slowpoke tails!_

The wild Slowpoke let out a long yawn. _These things probably don't even need to be battled to be captured. They seem weak. _I took the multi-ball out of my backpack, and aimed it upon the hapless Slowpoke Pokémon. Similar to a regular poke ball, a red light emanated from the device and shot the Pokémon transporting it inside the ball. _Awesome! That was easy enough. _Suddenly twenty or so lights shot out of the ball in quick succession. _Whoa! I think I made the multi-ball capture all of the Slowpokes in the room! I'll check this out later, but for now I need to find Miles!_

I journeyed further into the cave and found no sign of Miles or the mysterious, strong trainer he was battling. I entered the Midnight headquarters area of the well, and it was in worse shape than I remember. It looked like a part of the headquarters collapsed, but besides that it looked the same. Dumbfounded, I decided to leave Slowpoke Well after thirty minutes of searching for Miles.

"Blue? Why were you in there? I told you I'd make it out," said a tired, dirty Miles. _Man, he's covered in dirt!_

"Miles! Yeah, I was just in there looking for you. I came back as soon as I dropped Sandra off at Kurt's. What happened in there?" I replied.

"I'm not proud of myself, but you have to understand if you were in my position. It was pure chaos. I had the two of you kids to protect against a very strong trainer, and I ended the battle quickly with the least amount of casualties," he explained looking away from me.

"Casualties?" I asked.

"Uh, yeah. I made my Slaking collapse the well upon Talbot and his three Pokémon..." he mumbled.

"Wait, so you killed that man? You're joking, right?" I shouted.

"Hey now, don't be yelling around words like 'killed'! In all honesty, I don't think I could get arrested for murder; if I explained the situation to the Rangers they would understand what I did was for the greater good. Besides, Midnight members are outlaws in this region. So keep this a secret between us, okay?" pleaded Miles. _This doesn't sit right with me. Did he have to resort to something so drastic?_

* * *

"I guess if it was for the greater good..." I replied uneasily.

Day Fourteen

I awoke and performed my morning routine, but I had one thing on my mind: Why would Miles leave without telling me? _I still can't get over that Miles got his gym badge, and left town two days ago. I thought we were friends! I've been stuck waiting in Azalea practically friendless – Except Kurt and Sandra – for the gym battle today, talk about depressing. I want to get this battle finished and leave this lame town once and for all. _

I spent the the rest of the day doing one-on-one training with my Pokémon to prepare the renowned Pokémon Prodigy. I didn't give myself time to eat lunch. I showed up to the Azalea gym at one fifty P.M. Eager for the fight. The greenhouse-like gym was buzzing with trainers; some were battling and most were watching and talking. I spotted Sandra sitting on her grandfather's shoulders in the crowd waving at me. _I'm glad they showed up! I could use some cheering on. That reminds me, I ought to ask where Kurt released all of those Slowpokes. I would like to check up on those sluggish Pokémon._

I spoke to the nerdy guy, Hubert, who signed me up for the match in weeks past asking him where Milton was. Hube told me the match was about to start, and, man, was he right. I turned around to spot a dorky seven year old boy wearing dirty overalls, thick, dorky glasses, and holding a long pole with a net on the top. _No crapping way! The gym leader here is a little kid? This __**has**__ to be a joke! _I stood there waiting for someone to direct me to the proper gym leader.

"Milton,this is Blue Slade. He is challenging you today the Hive Badge. Afterward, you can do what you please," said Hubert. He took Milton's bug-net from him.

"Oh! Thanks, brother. Mr. Slade, if you could follow me to the center of the gym we can begin our match," said Milton. He guided me to the center of the gym where the vegetation was the thickest; I spotted several caterpillar Pokémon as we walked.

"Before we start...are you really Milton? I mean, you're the Pokemon Prodigy? Because I was expecting someone…older to be the gym leader," I questioned the nerdy kid.

He sighed and replied; "Yes, I'm really the gym leader in Azalea. I'm eight years old, and I'll be more than you can handle." _Whoa! Cocky, too? It's so on!_

"Alright, you twerp! It's so on! Don't go crying to your mother after I whoop you!" I exclaimed. Milton did not become agitated and retained his cool.

"For this gym battle, it will be a one-on-one Pokémon fight. You can only use three Pokémon in this battle, which you can freely switch out at any time unless they are incapable of battling. You must defeat all three of my Pokémon to earn the Hive badge. Are you ready, Mr. Slade?" explained the Pokémon Prodigy calmly.

"Wait a second; I only have to beat three Pokémon in this badge? When I battled Hawkeye for the Zephyr badge I had to take down six Pokémon! This is going to be a child's play! And quit calling me 'Mr. Slade', I'm not my old man" I said, chuckling. I then realized what I said, and became a little uneasy for some reason. I looked around at our on growing crowd to see if they were laughing, and they weren't. I heard mutterings of 'jerk' and such. _What's with everyone? Too serious!_

"Oh! Was Hawkeye your first gym battle?" asked Milton politely.

"Yeah, so what?" I retorted.

"It makes sense, then. It is mandated by the League of Champions how every trainer's first gym battle plays out; it is to test the trainer and their Pokémon's endurance. Chances are the gym leader's Pokémon in a first comer's battle are relatively weak. Hmm...I digress, any other questions?" explained Milton.

"No! Let's just get this over with!" I yelled. _This kid is annoying. He acts like he's better than me or something. He basically said that despite taking down six Pokémon that it was easy because they were weaklings! That is so far from the truth! Hawkeye's flying Pokémon were no pushovers! I'm going to show this kid what my awesome Pokémon are made of!_

We separated from one another to give room for our Pokémon to fight. _I really wish Miles would've woken me up for his battle, I could have used a head's up on this Pokémon Prodigy kid. I don't want to take any risks, I'm going to use the heavy-hitters: Boulderboa, Jaws, and Berserk. _

We tossed out our first poke balls, mine releasing the monstrous Onix Pokémon and he released a three foot tall cutesy purple butterfly Pokémon. I scanned my opponent's Pokémon; "BUTTERFREE, BUTTERFLY POKEMON. WATER-REPELLENT POWDER ON ITS WINGS ENABLES IT TO COLLECT HONEY, EVEN IN THE HEAVIEST OF RAINS."

"Bishop, pin: Stun Spore," ordered Milton. _What kind of orders are those?_

The butterfly Pokémon flew above Boulderboa (higher than she could reach) releasing glittery green powder from its white wings. Boulderboa remained coiled waiting for my orders. _Stun Spore...that sounds bad. Hurry what can B.B. use to deflect that stuff? I know she can't dodge all of that in time! Mud sport!_

"Boulderboa! Use Mudsport!" I shouted.

The great rock serpent lied out on the ground, and quickly began rolling in the ground covering herself in mud. She stopped rolling in mud until she was completely covered in a thick layer of mud. The slowly descending powder reached Boulderboa's back, and nothing happened.

"Good work B.B.!" I shouted.

"Impressive tactic! I suppose you deduced that Stun Spore paralyzes its target. Very clever!" spoke Milton.

"...Thanks! I'm no push-over, Pokemon Prodigy!" I retorted.

"Boulderboa, use Rock Throw!" I ordered.

"Bishop, guard: evasive maneuvers!" ordered the gym leader.

Boulderboa twirled the end of her tail and launching the tail-end boulder at the Butterfree. The butterfly Pokémon dodged the boulder attack, but was unaware that the boulder flew through the tree directly behind it. The butterfly Pokémon was then smashed by the falling tree. _Good thing we had target practice!_

"Well done, Mr. Blue! I'm impressed. Now try Rook!" said Milton as he released his next Pokémon. It looked like a blue-green pine cone with small eyes. _Are you kidding me? This little pine cone? B.B. is going to crush it!_

Despite how weak it looked, I wanted to scan the new Pokémon. "PINECO, BAGWORM POKEMON. IT HANGS AND WAITS FOR FLYING INSECT PREY TO COME NEAR. IT DOES NOT MOVE ABOUT MUCH ON ITS OWN.

"Boulderboa tackle Rook!" I ordered. _Another bug Pokémon down._

"Rook, gambit: Counter," ordered Milton. _What does that mean?_

Boulderboa lunged that the small Pineco, and it looked like Boulderboa's head crushed the pine cone Pokémon. Then, suddenly, Boulderboa flew backwards and landed behind me on its back – Luckily, the crowding trainers moved out of the way. _Do my eyes trick me? How did that little thing do that?_ I ran over to B.B. to inspect her, and she was knocked out cold. She had a massive chip in her chin from Pineco's attack.

"Good try, B.B.," I said petting the behemoth of a Pokémon. I zapped her back to her poke ball and released Berserk. _I can't underestimate that little Pokémon. If it can take B.B out in one hit, I have to be careful._

"Pineco, gambit: Bide," ordered Milton. _Finally something I understand! I know Boulderboa can use the move Bide; the Pokémon builds up energy from the opponent's blows and then releases it back at them._

"Berserk use Focus Energy!" I ordered.

Both Pokémon remained still. Berserk stared Rook down as if he was analyzing it for weak spots.

"Berserk use Fury Swipes!" I shouted suddenly breaking the staredown.

My Mankey Pokémon leaped behind the Pineco, flipped it, and with pin-point precision swiped it three times in three different locations with great speed. Then, as if Rook's body needed a moment to catch up, began bleeding profusely in three locations. _It's knocked out! _

"Well done again, Mr. Blue. Most trainers have much difficulty passing Rook, but you have bested him with a well thought out technique. But now I will resort to Queen," spoke Milton tossing out his final poke ball. It released another bug Pokémon. This one was green, about four feet tall with long blade-like arms, two regular legs, a reptilian-like head, and a pair of short wings on its back. _Whoa. Huge claws. Those things could be bad news. I better scan it._

"SCYTHER, MANTIS POKEMON. WHEN IT MOVES, IT LEAVES ONLY A BLUR. IF IT HIDES IN GRASS, ITS PROTECTIVE COLORATION MAKES IT INVISIBLE,"spoke the monotone Pokedex.

"Queen, Zugzwang: False Swipe." ordered Milton. _What the..?_

"Berserk Karate Chop!" I ordered swiftly.

The Scyther Pokémon rushed over to Berserk in a blink of an eye, and slashed Berserk. Berserk retaliated by karate chopping Queen, but he was too slow. The attack completely missed, and Queen was no where to be seen. Then, suddenly it slashed Berserk's chest once more, and Berserk retaliated the same way, missing once more. Berserk became furious; outraged at its opponent's tactic.

"Try Low Kick instead!" I suggested to my Pokémon.

The opposing Scyther Pokémon performed the exact same tactic upon Berserk, and he still missed his counter attack. Completely enraged now, Berserk began yelping with rage and lost control. He began pounding his fists upon its chest, and roaring with all his might – Albeit his roar was high-pitched sounding. Then something strange happened to Berserk, he gripped the ground and let out a long howl, and he looked different. Afterward Berserk looked like he suddenly grew two feet, ditched his tail, and grew bigger muscles. _Did he just have a growth spurt? I think I'm going crazy._

"Berserk! Fury Swipes!" I shouted.

As if he honed his senses, Berserk spotted Queen up in a tree and landed two swipes upon it.

"What a delight! Your Mankey evolved into Primeape amidst a battle! This should prove interesting!" said Milton smiling faintly.

"What? What are you talking about, man? Evolution?" I asked. _Is that the reason why he looks kind of different?_

"Queen, Zugzwang: False Swipe to Wing Attack," ordered my opponent calmly. _I guess this isn't the time for questions._

"Berserk use Seismic Toss!" I ordered. _If this connects it should take out that Scyther._

Queen moved in for the quick slash attack, and she successfully suckered Berserk into an immediate counter that missed. _I think I understand Milton's strategy with Queen. He uses that False Swipe to trick Berserk...Oh no!_

Then Queen appeared quickly above Berserk, and came down upon him with a powerful airborne smack with his scythe-like claw. This caused Berserk to stumble backwards, and then fall back on his butt then completely to the ground. _Man! He got another one!_

I threw out my last poke ball revealing my favorite, Jaws. The Totodile looked eager to fight. He snapped ferociously at the bug Pokémon. _I'm thankful I've had a bit of time to train Jaws after the Slowpoke Well deal. He was really rusty, but I think he's more than capable of taking on this Scyther._

"This is it Mr. Slade. If you lose this Pokémon, you lose the match. I don't have another opening in two months, so be careful," said Milton. _Is he taunting me? Is that really necessary?_

"Jaws, use Bulk Up!" I ordered.

"Queen, Attack: Slash," ordered Milton.

In what felt like less than a second, Queen appeared directly in front of Jaws and swiped his chest diagonally in one swift motion. I blinked my eyes to make sure I wasn't dreaming, and I saw Jaws belly down on the ground bleeding. _We lost the match._

34


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Wading Through Darkness **

"No!" I screamed falling to my knees. My eyes welled up with tears as the crowd cheered for Milton. I blocked out the roaring fans; focusing on Jaws as he lay on the ground. I watched on as blood poured out of his fresh wound, but my mind was elsewhere. _The battle can't just __**end**__ like that! I was doing so well, and, then, that nerd switched to that incredibly powerful Scyther of his, Queen! Then...he won. Ugh! How can an eight year old beat me like that? Am I really that bad of a Pokémon trainer? I let Jaws get hurt again! How can I let this happen twice? Is this the end? _I watched Jaws' puddle of blood as it inched closer to me returning my confidence. I wiped my eyes. _No, this is not over! I'll be back in days, weeks, even years – whenever to take this little nerd on again! I'm no pushover! Neither are my Pokémon._

"Blue! Hey Blue!" shouted someone, penetrating the loud cheers and breaking my focus. I stood up from the ground, and turned around. I saw Kurt dressed in formal attire pushing through the crowd with his young granddaughter Sandra following close behind. _Huh? I nearly forgot that those two came to watch me._

"Blue...you did really great!" squealed Sandra then looked at the ground. _Good way of showing it by staring at your feet! _

"Blue you did an exceptional job. You were just short of winning!" greeted Kurt as he made his right index and thumb look like they're pinching the air. _Don't remind me! I realize how freaking close I was!_ I let out a deep sigh. "I've seen other trainers lose much sooner than you; you must take pride in defeating two of Milton's Pokémon! Although…you might want to return your Totodile before it bleeds to death for goodness-sake!" continued Kurt with his hand on my shoulder. He nodded his head in the direction of Jaws behind me. _Oh crap!_

"Oh, yeah! I don't know what I was thinking," I replied glumly turning around and returning my wounded Pokémon to his poke ball. I looked at my reflection in Jaws' puddle of blood. _…Dad? What do I do?_

"Hey Blue. Are you going to be busy tonight?" asked Kurt. His words brought me back to the Azalea gym, and reminded me of something.

"No. Hold that thought though," I replied.

"I want to talk to Milton real quick about something," I mumbled to myself. I walked towards my victorious opponent, who was already busy chatting to his brother about Arceus knows what. By this time most of the people that came to watch our battle dispersed. _Milton's probably asking who's next on his victim list! The kid's like a robot. _

"Ah! Mr. Slade! You were quite a challenge! Especially your Mankey, pardon me, Primeape was more than a handful. It's a shame it is weak to flying type attacks; otherwise, you would have had a higher probability of defeating me today. Ah, anyways, was there something you would like to talk about?" said Milton in a calm demeanor.

"Primeape?" I asked.

"Yes, your Mankey evolved mid-battle into Primeape. You might want to examine said Pokémon for differences after it is healed. At any rate, is there something I can help you with?" explained Milton, now a little annoyed.

"Yeah, actually there is something you can do for me. Sign me up for another battle immediately. I want to battle you again as soon as I can," I answered with wavering confidence.

"Hmm. Excuse me, I must talk to my brother, Hubert, about possible openings," said Milton. He walked over to his lanky, nerdy brother, and began whispering while looking at a laptop.

"Alright, Mr. Slade, I regret to inform you that my earliest opening will be three months from now," stated Milton after a few moments of waiting.

"You got to be kidding me! Three months? That's so far away from now! You can't expect me to wait for that!" I exclaimed.

"Like I said, I'm sorry to place you three months from now, but it is the best I can do," he replied coolly.

"You know what? Fine, sign me up. I'll be here in three months, and I'll beat the crap out of you!" I shouted in rage. _Milton bugs the crap out of me. Haha! Bugs! The little nerd!_

I turned around to see Kurt and young Sandy still waiting on me. Most of the crowd dissipated while I was chatting to child-gym leader.

"Ahem. Mr. Slade?" chimed in Milton as I was walking away. I turned around to face Milton. His eyebrows were slightly arched. I sighed deeply. _This can't possibly be good._

"Yeah, what do you want Milton?" I replied annoyed just as much as I was confused.

"It seems you have nearly forgotten to pay me for your defeat! One second allow me to calculate – "Milton said crunching numbers on a handheld calculator he retrieved from his pocket on his shirt. "Ah! It appears you owe me two thousand dollars," he said coldly. He seemed almost eager for me to dole out my cash, but I could've been wrong. I took off my backpack, and reached for the small stash of cash hidden in a cool, little, secret pouch. I only had two thousand and twenty one dollars left. _Oh my Arceus! I'm poor! Freaking Bamboo Palace has sucked me dry!_ I reluctantly handed him the cash and mumbled 'greedy nerd' under my breath. Milton didn't bother thanking me, and swiftly counted the wad of cash. He nodded to me, and walked back to his brother. I moved towards Kurt and Sandy. _This has been the worst! Just because he's a gym leader he can ask for all that money? That's ridiculous! How do they expect weaker trainers who barely scrape by to cough up that dough! Man, I hate this kid! I bet he rakes in at least ten grand a day!_

"Blue, are you okay?" asked Kurt placing his warm hand upon my left shoulder.

"No, I'm not okay old man! I lost a gym battle, my Pokémon are beat up – in a real bad way, and I gave away nearly all of my money to that 'gym leader'!" I said angrily, swiping his hand off me. I glared angrily into the old man's kind, brown eyes.

"I know it may look difficult for the moment, but this is fleeting! I've seen you in action; you'll land back on your feet before you know it," replied Kurt, smiling. He winced a little from smiling. _Maybe he's right. At least I don't have a black eye._ I smirked a little from my joke.

"Yeah, I guess so…" I pouted, resorting back to my initial angst, stubbornly with my arms crossed.

"How do you feel about a homemade meal tonight? It's the least we can do to repay you, Blue," said Kurt after a long pause.

"Yeah, I think that'll be good. I can't really afford to eat at that crapping Bamboo Palace anyways," I replied, frowning.

"Well, it's about four o'clock now, how does seven sound for dinner?" he asked.

"Fine," I answered tersely. I began my walk out of the gym at this point. _I do not want to be in this sucky place any longer! And I definitely do not want any more pep talks from Mr. Wussy-man._

"We'll see you there, then! Come along, Sandra," called out Kurt. _What now for me? The only thing I have in my close future is to eat a free meal. I think I'm going to drop off my Pokémon to get healed, and then take a nap. I think a nap sounds fitting._

I exited the Azalea Gym, and walked to the red-bricked Poke Center. I was greeted by one of the few nurses working, and I briefly told them about the damage on the three Pokémon that battled. She said after scanning them that none of them had serious damage, and I could pick them up next morning. I left the three, Berserk, Jaws, and Boulderboa, with the nurse and decided to keep Smiley with me. _He doesn't need to be fed by the Poke Center nurses, and who knows, he might cheer me up! _

I released the gaseous ghost Pokémon while walking to my room. I didn't see him immediately and thought that I did something wrong with the poke ball. I stood around messing with the poke ball in the hallway, and, suddenly, Smiley leaped out from the small shadow of the poke ball. I jumped back and let out a shrill scream. The Pokémon then proceeded to lick me with his ethereal tongue. I couldn't help but laugh at his mischievous and goofy nature despite it making me scream like a little girl. We walked (I should say walked, Smiley floated in circles around me making funny faces) to my room, and once inside I fell into my bed as if I unexpectedly dropped dead.

I opened my eyes, and immediately checked my poke gear's clock. _Oh crap! It's seven twenty four! I'm so late!_ I jolted up from bed, and felt an eerie sensation tingle down my spine. I looked over my shoulder, and Smiley was hanging out in between my shadow and real-world. _Whoa! Talk about freaky to see! I completely forgot I left this little clown out!_

"We gotta run to Kurt's, Smiley! Are you up for that?" I said kicking him. My leg phased through his body, and he darted up towards my face. _Was he sleeping, too? Can ghosts sleep? _Smiley licked his eyeballs with his long tongue, and slowly nodded. _He doesn't seem very awake…but that was freaky to see!_

We darted out of the apartment-complex section of the Poke Center, and sped towards Kurt's small house. I knocked on his door, and it rattled slightly. _Man! I can't believe this door is already crappy! It wasn't easy putting this thing back up and everything. Kurt should have listened to Miles and bought a new door. Miles...where are you now?_

"There you are! We were wondering if you would arrive!" greeted Kurt energetically.

"Oh, uh, hey. Sorry about that. I was really wiped, and I took a nap. I guess I overslept a little..." I replied awkwardly.

"Don't worry about it! Come in, come in! Both of you!" said Kurt. _Dang! His house looked better than ever before. Everything looked like it was in order, and all the damaged stuff had been fixed or thrown out._

"Wow, Kurt! Your house is lookin' good! I'm impressed! Can you believe that his place was wrecked only several days ago?" I blurted out. Smiley snickered. _I nearly forgot I had left him out. Do Pokémon really understand us when we speak? I should probably return him to his poke ball; I feel like I'm breaking some kind of rule by allowing Pokémon in the house._ I returned Smiley before stepping any further inside their house.

"Ah! Why thank you, Blue! I really owe it to you and your friend Miles. Without you two, I wouldn't have much...Where is Miles? What happened to that young man?" said Kurt. He motioned to sit down on his couch while we talked. Sandra sat to my right and Kurt sat to my left on the couch. I was squirming uncomfortably between the two. _I really don't feel like talking about Miles! _

"I'm actually not too sure, Kurt. I do know he had his gym battle with Milton yesterday in the very least. I missed the match, though. However, I'm guessing he won, and decided to move on from here. That's what I think..." I answered solemnly. I avoided eye contact from my hosts. _Why does this make me so sad?_

"Oh yes, I almost forgot about that! Sandra and I watched Miles' battle yesterday. Great Scott, that boy has serious talent! Why did you miss it, Blue?" inquired Kurt. Sandra nodded fervently at his remark about Mile's greatness.

"You saw him battle?" I exclaimed, mouth agape and eyes wide.

"Yes, we certainly did!" said Kurt, chuckling. "He and his Pokémon are very skilled. It's no wonder he had no problems rescuing Sandra, here!" replied Kurt, beaming.

"Hey! He may be awesome, have cool Pokémon, and whatever, but don't forget about me! If I hadn't been there to help him, I don't think some people might be here!" I argued, and nodded to my right. Sandra got teary eyed, and stormed out of the living room. _Uh-oh__!_

"Blue, that was not very kind! I had not forgotten about you. I was merely appreciating what Miles did for me and my family. Now, could you please go apologize to Sandra while I make the final touches on our dinner? She should be in her room down the hall on the right. You can't miss it," scolded Kurt.

"Really?" I asked, absolutely bewildered. Kurt frowned and nodded his head approvingly slowly. He stood up and walked into their kitchen, leaving me alone on the couch leaving with my dark thoughts. _Why doesn't anyone ask how I feel? It's always Blue go help this guy, go do this, Blue, Blue, Blue! ...Well I guess I should probably apologize or something. I do want that free meal! _I stood up, tried to shake off my attitude, and headed towards Sandra's room. I looked at a few pictures hanging in the hallway leading to Sandra's room. There was a couple with a full family, a solid six folks, smiling happily at a beach._ I wonder who all these people are. Sandra looks so young!_ Then, before I knew it I was face-to-face with a door decorated from top-to-bottom with vivid pictures of Pokémon. _Whoa! Kurt wasn't joking – You can't miss this! Sandra's door is covered with pictures of all different Pokémon. _I excitedly touched each Pokémon I knew._ Oh cool a Blastoise! And a Totodile! And a Onix! _

Then, suddenly, Sandra opened the Pokémon covered door. I almost fell over because I had my hand at the top of the door on a picture of an exceptionally awesome Charizard. She giggled uncontrollably. I caught my balance, and frowned. "Not funny," I mumbled.

I walked inside while the little girl was cracking up on the floor. I expected pink, frilly, and princess-y typical girl, but I was pleasantly surprised. I saw several posters of well-known Pokémon Champions plastered on her walls, and decorations suited for a boy's room. _This reminds me of my room…_

"B-blue?" squeaked Sandra, now on her bed.

"Oh, uh, sorry about that. I was just looking around a little. You have a nice room!" I replied, smiling.

"Thanks," she said looking down at her bed sheets.

"And...I'm sorry about earlier. That wasn't very nice of me. Do you forgive me?" I asked, sitting next to Sandra on her bed.

"Yes!" she squealed hugging me tightly. I patted her back, and escaped from her strong grasp.

"Thanks. I'm having a bad day, sorry for putting that on you...Let's go eat dinner! I bet your grandfather has it all ready! Race you there!" I spat out. Sandra nodded in agreement. We sped out of Sandra's bedroom to the kitchen. _Good one, Blue! I totally didn't want to talk about her emotions or yucky whatevers. _We ran into the kitchen and I placed my hand on the dinner table after Sandra. _Double good one! Letting her win will definitely let her feel better!_ Kurt was startled by this and shook his head disapprovingly. Then he finished placing silverware on the table.

"Are you two speedsters ready to eat?" asked Kurt with a welcoming smile.

"Yeah!" we said excitedly. We sat down and enjoyed a wonderful beef and other stuff I didn't really care for stew. I was doubtful of the stew's tastiness based on gross-looking-greenish-hue, yet it turned out to taste okay. We talked very little during our dinner, but Sandra did bring up how I apologized to her. _Well that's good I guess…I didn't really plan on talking about it._

"Blue! Sandra! I'm glad to hear you two worked things out!" said Kurt enthusiastically. He looked estatic about the news.

"Yeah! No prob, old man! Just doin' how I do!" I said building on Kurt's energy, with a big smile and my thumb pointing at my head.

"Did you enjoy the stew, Blue?" he then asked me.

"Yeah, it was good. Thanks," I replied, patting my stomach. Kurt and Sandra laughed.

"Oh, but look Grandfather! Blue didn't eat his vegetables! He didn't eat his vegetables unlike me, Grandfather!" declared Sandra after she peered into the remains of my bowl. _Great! This girl is nothing but trouble._

"Sandra, what have I taught you?" sternly asked Kurt.

"Ranger Rule number eighteen: A ranger never rats out their comrade unless their comrade is breaking one of the Ranger rules," recited Sandra eagerly.

"So I guess not eating your veggies is not a rule of the rangers?" I remarked, smirking.

Sandra rolled her eyes. "No, don't be silly, Blue," answered Sandra. _Wow, weak sense of humor in this family. I am so ready to get out of here. _

"Well, thank you two for dinner tonight, but I think I'm going to get back to my room at the Poke Center," I said.

"You're quite welcome, Blue! I'm glad you enjoyed it so! But there is one thing I would like to talk to you about something in private before you leave for the evening," said Kurt moving in close to me. "Sandra get ready for bed while I talk to Blue for a couple of minutes," stated Kurt nodding to his granddaughter. Sandra left the table and walked towards her room.

"What's up? Did I, uh, do something wrong…again?" I asked, nervously. _Kurt reminds me of my parents._

"Of course not, young man. I had a favor to ask of you – I know I've already asked much of you recently, but please do this one last favor for me!" pleaded Kurt. _It can't be much worse than rescuing his granddaughter from bad guys in a cave, right?_

"Sure, whaddya need?" I replied, yawning.

"I would like it very much if you would take Sandra along with you on your journey," explained Kurt. _I was wrong. That is much worse than rescuing her!_

"Wait – What? Take her with me? She's only seven years old!" I exclaimed.

"I had a feeling you would react this way. Sandra herself requested this, and to be honest, after this whole ordeal I feel like you could do a better job of looking out for her than my old bones could. You would be doing both of us a huge favor," he clarified.

"B-but she doesn't even have any Pokémon!" I disputed.

"Actually she will. I have several Pokémon I keep around to help me make poke balls and other utilities," said Kurt smiling sheepishly.

"What? You told Miles and me that you didn't own any before! What's up with that, old man? You're acting really fishy!" I said giving him a squinty-eyed glare.

"I know I lied about that, but the reason I did was because my Pokémon are old like me, and I feared that they wouldn't be up for the job. I..didn't want any casulties," continued Kurt.

"So what makes you think it is okay to hand over these geezer Pokémon to a seven year old girl? And don't you think she's too young to be a Pokémon trainer?" I pressed on.

"Out of the Pokémon I own, I have one that will prove useful for Sandra. It is a Pokémon I acquired somewhat recently, and would be capable of battling for and defending Sandra. And, no I don't. I've seen trainers younger than her roaming through our small town; I'm sure you've seen them as well. Any other doubts, Blue?" he replied calmly. _Dang! He's right, but that is something that's always bothered me. That doesn't make it right._

"I just don't know old man. It doesn't sit right with me! I've seen trainers her age and they always look like they are in the gutter, y'know? Besides, I don't think I'm capable of looking out for her; I have a hard enough time with handling my Pokémon," I explained. _I'm sorry Jaws, B.B., and Berserk! I shouldn't have gotten you so hurt!_

"I understand what you are saying Blue, but she wants this more than you can imagine. We both recognize your skills as a Pokémon trainer, and that's why I feel comfortable…letting Sandra start her own adventure. Moreover, I believe you will be able to look after better than you think, and you'll probably learn a thing or two from this experience," responded Kurt placing his hand on my shoulder. _But I'm really not that great of a trainer! I'd feel better if Miles was around; I think he would do a better job of looking after both me and Sandra._

"And better yet, I have no clue where to go. I'm practically out of money now thanks to that awful twerp of a gym leader," I moaned.

"I think Goldenrod City would be the next logical place for you to travel. They have another gym there, and you pass through the dark Ilex Forest that contains many rare Pokémon. That should prove to be a true challenge and treat for a trainer of your caliber," suggested Kurt. I took a moment to stare into Kurt's eyes. _Wow, this guy really wants me to take his granddaughter away from her. I bet he thinks those Midnight jerks are coming back here. He truly feels like this is doable. I just don't want to let him down…_

"Alright, old man - you got me. I'll do it. I'll take Sandra with me to Goldenrod City with me. But if she whines too much or doesn't seem ready I'm bringing her straight back here, okay?" I replied.

"Blue! Thank you so much! This means so much to me, and I know this will mean so much to Sandra!" he exclaimed rushing over to hug me.

"Yeah, yeah, no problem!" I said pushing him off me.

"Sandra! Come in here, little one!" called Kurt. Sandra quickly walked back into the dining room donning a pair of sky-blue onsies. I scoffed at the sight of the seven year old girl in lame night-wear. Sandra glanced at me with an eyebrow raised.

"What's going on, grandpa?" she asked lazily.

"Blue, here, has agreed to take you along with him on his Pokémon journey!" he hollered with intense excitement.

"No way!" She squealed jumping into her grandfather's arms. A moment later she let go of Kurt, and walked over to me and hugged me.

"Thank you so much, Blue! You really didn't have to do this for me," she whispered loudly because of the height difference. I squirmed my way out of her grasp, and let out a sigh of relief.

"Well, now that's all done and over, I guess I'll see ya tomorrow morning. Be ready! Get a backpack and some supplies ready," I said heading towards the exit.

"Right! Of course! Anything else?" she asked.

I turned around to face Sandra and stopped to think for a moment. "Oh! Sandwiches. Make lots of them! I get really hungry…!" I answered rubbing my belly.

"That makes sense. I'll make sure to have a lot of them! I'll see you tomorrow!" replied Sandra. _Wow, no laughs! Ugh!_

"Yeah, I'll be over here around seven or so," I said frowning a little.

"Ranger rule #324: The early Pidgey always catches the Caterpie!" recited Sandra pointing with her index finger.

"Yeah, see ya…" I replied, scratching my head.

"So long Blue!" said Kurt.

My mind was reeling as I walked back to my room. _ I can see why Kurt wanted me over for dinner tonight; not to cheer me up, but to make sure I'd be willing to have his granddaughter travel with me. Ugh! That old fart is really starting to wear me down._

"Blue!" whispered a soft voice. I felt something prodding me in the middle of my back. I turned myself over lazily, and opened my eyes. Sandra was standing next to my bed with a huge grin. I groaned.

"He's awake! Thank you nurse!" exclaimed Sandra.

"Good! Tell Mr. Slade his Pokémon are ready when he is!" shouted someone as they walked away.

"Hey! Blue! Are you awake?" asked Sandra.

"Ugh! What time is it?" I questioned back.

"It's nine o'clock! You overslept! I had to get one of the nice nurses to let me in your room to wake you up! We got to get going! 'The early Pidgey always catches the Caterpie,'" continued Sandra.

"Ha! Whoops! I'm totally not ready to get a move out. I need some food and a shower," I said, yawning loudly.

"Oh! I brought you these!" said Sandra pulling out a plastic bag chock-full of muffins. I impulsively snatched the bag, and commenced chowing down.

"Woo! That was so good - My compliments to the chef!" I cried, falling back onto my bed.

"Thank goodness I got grandpa to make more than one bag of muffins! That was supposed to last us until Goldenrod!" whined Sandra.

"Great! When can I eat those other muffins you mentioned?" I asked greedily. I sat up and reached for her backpack.

"Blue! Those are for later!" she whined. She then swiped her backpack and stepped away from me.

"Fine!" I replied, arms crossed, and pouting.

"Well…looks like I'm gonna go take a shower now. I'll be out in a few minutes," I moaned.

With a towel over my shoulder I shuffled my way into the communal shower area. _I know I slept in, but can't anyone give me a break? I had a rough day yesterday! Ugh!_

As I was showering I heard a girl's shrill scream and it jolted me into action. _Was that Sandra?_ I was stumbling to get dressed to see what was going on. _Oh man! I hope to Arceus that those Midnight thugs haven't found us! _I sprinted back to my room praying that my new companion was okay. As I was fumbling to insert my key into the door, I heard laughter. _Huh?_

I opened the slowly and watched as Smiley was licking Sandra's face as she was rolling around on my bed. It was without a doubt one of the funniest things I've ever seen. I exploded with laughter as well, and fell to my knees.

"Blue?"

"Yeah?" I replied wiping a tear from my face.

"I was curious about your Pokémon, and I sort of released your Gastly. Oh my gosh! I am so sorry! I hope you're not upset!" squealed Sandra.

"Don't sweat it. You had me really worried though. I could hear your scream while I was showering, and I thought something bad was going on. I should've known better that it was just 'ole Smiley. Isn't he funny?" I said while still laughing intermittently.

"Oh! I didn't mean to worry you! I just _had_ to know what Pokémon you owned! It was killing me! I'm so sorry Blue!" exclaimed Sandra looking like she was on the verge of crying. I stood up and walked over to where she was sitting on the bed. _This kid is such a worry-wart! _

"It's okay, Sandra! It really is. But I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask next time," I said patting her on the back.

"A Ranger never lets curiosity best their common sense!" she muttered.

"Yeah, something like that. How about we hit the road?" I replied stifling my chuckle.

"Sandra! I can't believe it took us another hour to get my Pokémon back and do some shopping!" I complained as we walked towards to the entrance to Ilex Forest. I looked down at my poke gear and it read 11:00 A.M. We walked through a small, plain gateway structure that lead us into Ilex Forest. We spotted several trainers lounging around on several couches. _Wow! They look exhausted! It must be quite the trek!_

"Me either. Who knew there were so many different Pokémon repels? And potions, too! And antidotes! I'm ever so glad Grampa gave me enough spending money so we can travel well prepared!" chirped Sandra.

"God, you such an old person! Taking forever to browse every item in the store!" I snarled.

"Well prepared is peace of mind; hastiness is restlessness. That's something Grampa always told me," she replied looking a little concerned.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Let's just go, okay? I'm so ready to get out of this town!" I said more annoyed than before. _Why did I agree to let this little rulebook tag along? _

"Speaking of Grampa, I nearly forgot to give you this! He wanted to give you this special pokѐball belt that can hold up to ten pokѐballs! He said he wanted you to have as many friends with us at all times," said Sandra. She proceeded to take out a red and black belt with ten smallish circular stations out of her backpack and handed it to me.

"Whoa! How cool!" I remarked with pure joy. I immediately took off my old belt and hastily replaced it with the new one. I then placed all my pokѐballs on this new, fancy belt. _Maybe having her come along will pay off! This belt should be very handy as I capture more Pokémon! _We decided to leave the building after I equipped the belt and practiced placing and removing pokѐballs.

I shouted back to the town "Azalea Sucks!" as we entered the forest. _Goldenrod has got to be better than that little crappy town!_ I turned around and everything was cloaked in darkness. I looked down at feet and they were covered in what I assumed to be thick grass. _Oh man! This stuff is going to be a pain to walk through!_

"Your grandfather wasn't kidding! This place is dark as night, and its day-time! How weird!" I declared as I was looking around with squinted eyes.

"Yes, it is a strange place. Not many people travel through here because of that. This forest has a bad reputation, and it's been said that it's pretty dangerous, too. I remember reading a report that they haven't even discovered all the different Pokémon that live in here!" said Sandra, her eyes were scrunched up as well.

"Dang! How exciting! I have a feeling that we're going to catch some rare Pokémon in here!" I said eagerly.

"Who knows what we'll find in here! We should probably stick- Blue?" said Sandra. _She sounds scared! _I snickered. I took a few silent steps to the right of her. I watched on as Sandra tried to find me. I released Boulderboa when her back was facing me.

"Blue! Blue! Where did you go? Where are you?" Sandra called out. Her voice cracked.

"Shh! I'm over here. I think there is something watching us," I whispered. Boulderboa began breathing heavily.

"I can't see you anywhere! Eeek!" cried out Sandra.

Sandra was face-to-face to Boulderboa. She tried to turn and run away, but BB moved her in closer with her massive tail. I ran over and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Gotcha!" I shouted.

"Wh-wh-what do you mean?" she squealed. Sandra sounded like she was sobbing.

"That's my Onix, Boulderboa! I thought it'd be funny to scare you in the dark, spooky forest!" I said, snorting with laughter.

"C-c-can you please tell it to let me go?" gulped Sandra.

"Sure thing! Boulderboa squee-"

"Don't Blue!" shrieked Sandra.

"Ah, man! I was just kidding again! You should've seen your face! BB, let Sandra go, please," I said laughing.

"I wish I could've seen your face better, you looked so scared! It was great!" I said as she slowly walked over while eying the gigantic rock Pokémon.

"Blue, did I do something wrong? Why did you do that to me? I was scared!" pouted Sandra.

"Ah man, you need to lighten up Sandy! It was just a joke! You're so tame - it's such a drag! Miles and I would joke around like that all the time! You need to loosen up a bit! And besides you have been giving me a headache with all those Ranger Rules or whatever they're called," I griped.

"Those rules are guidelines to live by!" she retorted and turned away from me.

"See! There you go again! You need to relax. You're not on this adventure with your grandfather. You're with me, and as far as I know I'm about having crazy adventures - I don't think this will be a very fun adventure if you're going to continue to be like that!" I barked back.

"I thought you were a nice person because you helped me and Grampa, but you're not! You-you're bully. You shouldn't do things like that! It's not very nice! A Ranger never hurts anyone out of their own benefit…." remarked Sandra. She sat down on the ground and huddled her legs. She began to cry. _Oh great! She's crying now. I really didn't ask for this! _I slowly and unassumingly walked over to Sandra.

"Grampa was right! I should've asked Miles to-"

"Whoa! Hold back the flood of tears, will ya? Look, I tell you what, if you promise to be more laid-back I promise to not to prank you anymore, okay?" I said bending over, wiping a tear off her cheek.

"Fine. Can we go now?" she asked standing up.

"Certainly! Come on, let's be chipper! We're going on an adventure together! It's going to be a blast!" I shouted with an arm around Sandy pushing her along.

As we ventured further Ilex Forest it became increasingly thicker. It was thicker with vegetation and it was incredibly hard to see in front of you. I had to constantly check my poke-gear to confirm we were moving in the right direction. _Man, it would be easy to get lost in here! I'm so glad Hughie gave this gadget to me!_

"Hey, have you ever been in this forest before?" I asked Sandra breaking the long-lasting silence. _That was getting uncomfortable_.

"Yes, I have. But only a couple of times; Grampa forbid me going in here by myself - he always said it was a very scary place for someone like me to wander in," she answered without making eye contact.

"Oh, really? I could see that. What were you two doing in here?" I pressed on.

"I was helping Grampa gather some supplies last spring, and another time he took to me to visit his business partner. What time is it, Blue? A Ranger never travels without the Sun on their side,"

"Sandy! What did I tell you about those rule-things?" I shouted, halting our pace.

"Heh, yeah I guess it'll be hard for me to stop reciting those. Sorry! But…what time is it?" she continued, smiling.

"It looks like it's about five thirty. I think we should continue on a bit more," I said looking into the thick forest. _It's a shame there isn't really a path we could follow; I think we could've covered more ground if we did seeing as neither one of us really know where we're heading._

"Don't you think we should start setting up a camp so we can get ready to eat and sleep?" asked Sandra.

"I understand what you're saying, but take it from someone who's been through his fair share of wilderness. I don't think it doesn't matter if it really is night time – I mean I can't imagine this place getting any darker. So I say we set up when we're more tired," I explained.

"Oh, okay.." she replied looking a little sullen.

"Hey! What do you think about meeting some of my Pokémon? I know you've seen them in the gym battle, but you haven't met them!" I said excitedly.

"Yes, please!" Sandra said with immense excitement. _Which one? Definitely not Boulderboa; she came off a little scary. She'll have to wait. I think Jaws will be the best bet! I haven't seen him in a while anyways! _I took the pokѐball in the center of the belt and released the Pokémon inside. A bright red light briefly illuminated the dim forest.

"This is Jaws! Believe it or not, but he is my first Pokémon! He is awesome!" I said, presenting my blue reptilian Pokémon. Jaws waddled quickly over to me, and I hugged him. _Sheesh! Jaws s getting pretty heavy!_ Jaws snorted and grunted with glee.

"Neat-o! What a terrific Pokémon! That is a Totodile Pokémon, correct?" she asked, her eyes beaming.

"Yeah he sure is! You know your Pokémon, don'tcha?" I answered while playing with Jaws.

"Well…I guess so… Do you want to meet my Pokémon, Blue?" she asked timidly.

"Um, sure, I guess," I replied. Sandra then released her Pokémon, and it was a Scyther_. I nearly forgot that Kurt gave her a Pokémon. Wow it is the same green scythe-handed bug Pokémon that Milton used against me!_ Sandra's Pokémon hovered in front of its owner with its rapidly flapping thin wings. Despite my unease, I walked over to Sandra and her Pokémon. Her Scyther was nicer than I expected, and didn't slice my hand off like I thought it would. Jaws cowered behind me nervously looking upon the Scyther Pokémon. It stopped fluttering, and rubbed its scythes together. The Scyther menacingly stared at both Jaws and me as if it was sizing us up.

"His name is Edward. Grampa has owned him as long as I could remember. I'm really glad he's travelling with us! I know he's a strong Pokémon!" exclaimed Sandra.

"Yeah I bet…Anyways we need to get moving," I said.

"Blue, do you think it would be okay if I could see the rest of your Pokémon?" asked Sandra with a big smile.

"Later," I said. _I really would like to go look for some new Pokémon or at least train a bit, but Sandra seems a little unsure of herself as a trainer. I don't like her Scyther, Edward. Those things are intense. We need to focus on moving and getting out of this forest A.S.A.P. I'm somewhat surprised we hadn't run into all this danger that's been talked up._

"Well…okay," she replied.

"Let's get a move on. You never know what's watching you in a dark place like this," I said stepping forward.

"Blue! Blue! Get up!" shouted Sandra.

"Wha?" I mumbled groggily. I rubbed my eyes, and sat up. _Thank Arceus for Kurt's camping gear; sleeping on the ground is the worst._ My eyes fixed upon Sandra holding a pokѐball right in my face.

"Surprise!" she shrieked.

"Oh cool….you caught a Pokémon. I'm going back to sleep now…" I moaned, lying down.

"No, silly! I caught this for you! I used one of your pokѐballs in your backpack to catch it, and then synced it with your pokedex!" she shouted shaking me.

"Wait – what? You caught a Pokémon for me? How did you do that? I was going to take some time today to teach you how to battle and catch Pokémon!" I said jumping up from my sleeping bag, fully alert now.

"Oh! Grampa taught some of the trainer basics long before you came along! And the rest I learned from reading!" she said earnestly. "Anyways… I wanted to do this for you as a thank you! You've been so helpful and so nice to me," Sandra continued sheepishly, now watching her feet as they innocently kick dirt.

I scratched my head in complete confusion. _Am I really awake? Is this really happening? It sounds like she actually knows how to be a trainer __**long**__ before I did; maybe she's not as bad as she seems._

"So do you want to see it? I think you're going to like your new Pokémon!" Sandra said eagerly. She was waving the pokѐball around impatiently, and despite having some considerable height on Sandra she was really pushing it in my face.

"Yeah, I guess so…!" I said snatching the ball from her.

"One quick question though, Sandra," I said staring the pokѐball in my hand.

"What?" she squeaked. _She looks like as if she was going to wet herself from so much excitement! If her face was permanently stuck with that grin I don't think I could ever stop laughing._

"Did you plan this from the get go? I mean, did you, uh, plan on catching me a Pokémon for me?" I asked. Her excitement drained from her face.

"Yeah, I did! I thought it would be a great surprise…but if you don't want a Pokémon that someone else caught for you we could release it."

I looked back to the pokѐball in my hand. _I never really thought about this situation before; receiving a Pokémon as a gift – someone else catching a Pokémon for me. I mean Glen gave me Jaws, but that was really my only way to get a Pokémon of my own. But I feel like that is some sort of taboo. I don't feel good about this. But, but I really want to know what's inside! It's killing me! Maybe she pulled off a miracle caught me a rare Pokémon?_ I tapped the center of the pokѐball with my index finger. "Here goes nothing."

After a brief red light shot out of the pokѐball, I stared at the location I suspected a Pokémon to appear. _Is this a prank? Is she pranking me right now? Oh my gosh! Sandra got me so good! I totally deserve this…_ Just as I began to laugh at the trick, and in instant something pounced upon the back of Sandra's head. It was scurrying on her face as she tried to take it off. _What the…?_

"Help!"

"I'll get it Sandra!" I declared. I tried to swat off the eight-legged creature off her head, but the creature evaded me. I heard it shriek as I peered through the darkness looking for the creature, and then it jumped on my head! _What the heck is going on?_

I reached behind my head and tried feverishly to pull whatever brain-hungry monster off me. I felt something dig into my head, and I screamed in complete panic. _Something's trying to eat my brain!_ I was successful, and flung the creature in front of me several feet. After I patted my head to make sure everything was okay, I looked at the horrible creature that was trying to eat my brains.

"A spider?" I gasped. My vision suddenly became blurred. I noticed Sandra was face down in the grass. Ilium Forest was darker than ever before.

A powerful bright light emanated from a Pokémon. "Reeeeeeee" cried a bird Pokémon as it fell through the sky like a burning meteor.

The world was on fire.

"Good show, young lady! I'm astounded that I lost two consecutive battles!" boomed a familiar voice that belonged to a middle-aged, stocky man. He tipped his hat to his opponent, a young girl with bright red hair and bright, kind eyes. He returned his Pokémon and his opponent did as well; they met in the battle of the arena.

"Thanks, mister! My friend showed me how to prepare for this battle today. He's really smart when it comes to Pokémon," said a girl with a low-pitched in long drawl. She had a beautiful smile.

"Oh! Is your friend here? I would love a new challenge to redeem myself?" replied the man excitedly. He was looking behind the girl into the crowd and twirling his mustache.

"…No. It's just me," she replied solemnly.

"Ah, I see. Well, here is your badge Kimber-"

"It's Quimbly" she retorted angrily. She grabbed the ornate, shimmering tornado badge from the man's hand and disappeared into the crowd.

_Was that Quimbly?_ I felt a pang of guilt in my gut.

I immediately sat up, and threw up in front of me. I felt empty. I felt like something was eating away on my insides.

I found an open pokѐball next to my arm. _I'm leaving the pokѐball here! I don't want to see whatever spider Pokémon that was! It tried to kill me!_ "Arceus! What the crap happened to me?" I demanded. I received no answer. "Sandra?" I called out. I spotted her a few feet to my right laying on the ground out cold. _Crap! That Pokémon killed her! What do I do?_

I crawled over to where Sandie was lying, and I flipped the small girl over. Her eyes were closed; she looked like she was in a deep slumber, but I knew it was far worse than a nap. I spotted a bite mark on her left cheek. _It bit her!_ I put my hand underneath Sandie's nose to make sure she was breathing, and I felt air. _Thank Arceus she's okay! But what do I do? I don't think she's okay, and who knows I might be out of it soon! _

I racked my brain for ideas on what to do next, and it hit me. _Glenn! He worked with my dad on Pokémon anti-venoms. I'm sure he'll have an idea what I should do! I'm glad Mom gave me his phone number while I was in the hospital._

I called up Glenn on my pokegear. After a couple of rings, the phone icon was replaced by a round-faced man with a thick, short beard.

"Blue! What a surprise!"

"Hey Glen. I need your help!"

His face changed from enthusiasm to concern. "What's going on, my boy? Is Jaws injured? Or did Jaws injure you?"

"No! It's nothing like that – Jaws is doing great," I said smiling. "I think it's something worse than that. My friend caught me a Pokémon, and when I released it…it bit her. She's unconscious now…what do I do? Should I just give her one of the antidotes I picked up at the Poke Mart?" I pointed my pokegear at Sandie. I then showed Glenn where she was bitten.

"No! Whatever you do, don't do that! Antidotes are intended for Pokémon use not humans. Hmm. This does not look good, Blue. Do you have any idea what Pokémon bit her? How long ago did this happen? Did you get bitten? And where are you two?" he replied immediately.

"I, uh, don't know for sure if I did or not. The creature jumped on my head, and then I flung it off. So there's really no telling if it did bite me. I think it went was only an hour or two ago. I'm not entirely sure what it was, but what I do know is that it was small and it had eight legs. Oh, and we are in Ilium Forest. Sorry for not mentioning that earlier. Do you think there's anything I can do?"

"Good news: I think this might be manageable…But the bad news is you must act quickly. It sounds to me that your friend and possibly you have been infected with venom of a Spinarak Pokémon. It's a poison spider Pokémon, and its venom is used to slow down its prey. Based on your friend's symptoms it sounds like she received a large dose of the venom. This means the longer the venom stays in her system it will eventually stop her heart. So this is what you need to do Blue: there is a location called Slowpoke Well somewhat nearby Ilium Forest that is a habitat for what you would expect – Slowpokes. If you can capture a Slowpoke and allow your friend to suck on its tail she will be fully cured."

"What? Are you serious? Suck on a Slowpoke's tail?"

"Why yes, young man! You aren't knowledgeable of the curing properties of the Slowpoke? Their tail is considered to be the panacea for all human illnesses. That is why many deplorable thugs cut off their tails for they fetch a high price," Glenn explained. _Wow! This explains a lot! I guess that's why those Midnight guys were stationed up in Slowpoke Well…But Kurt moved the Slowpokes with that multi-ball! I got to call him now!_

"Awesome! Thanks Glenn! See ya!"

"Are you sure you know-" he uttered before I ended the call. I searched my contacts and called up Kurt.

"Hello Blue. How are you doing?" 

"Heya Kurt! Quick question: where did you locate those Slowpokes from Slowpoke Well?"

"I found a pond near the entrance in Ilium Forest for their new home. Why do you ask? Is Sandra with you?"

"Thanks! Got to go Kurt!"

"Can I talk to Sandra before you hang up?" he asked. His face looked a little worried.

"Uh..no! She's off getting some berries!" I then immediately pressed the hang up button on the device. _Whoo! That was a close one. I'd hate to think about what he would do if he knew Sandie was poisoned!_

Suddenly I felt dizzy, and I lost my balance. My breathing got heavy. _Crap! I got bitten as well! I need to get to that pond A.S.A.P.! Kurt said it was near the entrance to Ilium, and we haven't walked all that far in here. It can't possibly be too far away! I need to think of a way to locate the pond, and a way to get there quickly. I don't think I could carry her! I bet Jaws could smell or sense water or something. He did when we were leaving Violet City that one time. And Boulderboa would have no problem taking us there!_

I released Jaws and Boulderboa. I picked up Sandie and placed her on B.B.'s hard body, and then I hopped on holding her. I instructed hop on B.B.'s head and direct her to the water. I ordered the great rock snake Pokémon to listen to the small blue crocodile Pokémon on top of her head to find the pond; as well as to avoid trees as much as possible. With a body-shaking roar Boulderboa was off. Jaws gripped the Onix's head tightly while keeping its head in the air. He looked like it was sniffing the air. Jaws grunted, and Boulderboa lurched to the right. This happened several times, and I was feeling feint. I leaned my head to the right, and vomited once more. Then, unexpectedly, we hit a tree. The run-in caused Jaws, unconscious Sandie, and me to be tossed up in the air momentarily. Boulderboa grunted as if she was annoyed by the tree like she was caught in traffic. I made sure to hold on Sandie tightly so she wouldn't fall off this speeding rock Pokémon. Despite how much adrenaline I was pumping I still felt like I was going to pass out. _I hope we get there fast! I don't know how much longer I got until I become like Sandie! _

Bolderboa halted and skid across the ground. _Are we here?_ Jaws immediately hopped off his fellow Pokémon and waddled off. I lazily slid off as my energy was waning; I left Sandie lying on B.B. I instructed my Onix to stay put and protect Sandie as I looked for the lake.

"Jaws? Where are ya, buddy?" I called out. In seconds Jaws hurriedly waddled back to me, and took me to where the pond Kurt described. It looked like half of the size of a standard lake, and the water looked green from all the algae. "Jaws, can you go look for a Slowpoke for me?" I uttered. I was feeling sick to my stomach. I threw up again, despite my best efforts to keep it down. Jaws hesitated, but then dived into the pond after I nodded my head towards the pond. _I'm so glad Jaws understands me so well; we might not have made it this far without him. _I decided to sit on the bank of the pond as I waited for Jaws. It felt like hours, but eventually Jaws drug out a plump, purple four legged amphibian Pokémon out of the pond. The Slowpoke looked like it didn't even mind being pulled out of its home. _I guess it's good to catch right? I mean, it will let me suck its tail more likely if it is my Pokémon and not some wild one? _I put my thoughts aside and sluggishly tossed a pokѐball at it. The Slowpoke didn't put up a fight, and was caught without fail. I heard my pokedex beep from the innards of my backpack, and I took it out to see what the deal was.

"SLOWPOKE: DOPEY POKEMON. IT LAZES VACANTLY NEAR WATER. IF SOMETHING BITES ITS TAIL, IT WON'T EVEN NOTICE FOR A WHOLE DAY," spoke my pokedex after I opened it.

I hastily released my newly captured Pokémon, picked it up, and placed its white-tipped tail in my room despite my better judgment. The Slowpoke's tail engulfed my entire mouth; it felt like I was slurping on a huge slimy worm – it tasted horrible to boot. "Yuck!" I exclaimed after putting the Slowpoke on the ground. _I hope a couple seconds is enough to cure me; I don't know how long I could suck on that tail! It was too nasty!_

The Slowpoke stared vacantly at me with its bulbous eyes, as if it didn't even mind being in my mouth. _Wow, Berserk could learn a thing or two from this guy – he is so relaxed. Almost too much…_ I lost focus staring into the Pokémon's daydreaming eyes. I then felt a sharp pain on my leg that brought me back into focus. I looked down and Jaws had his mouth around my left leg. "Ow! Get off Jaws!" I said shaking my leg in the air. Jaws let go of voluntarily, and took off running. I quickly returned my Slowpoke, and chased after the little biter. _That hurt! Why did he do that?_

I chased the Totodile Pokémon back to Boulderboa, and I realized his game. He was bringing me back to Sandie as quick as possible! "Smart Jaws!" I said praising my faithful Pokémon. I placed the young girl on the ground. I let out Slowpoke once again, pried open Sandie's mouth, and put the Pokémon's tail in her mouth. A couple of moments she suddenly sat up, opened her mouth, and spat out the purple Pokémon's tail. "Yuck!" she shouted.

"Sandie! You're okay!" I said hugging her. The Slowpoke was sandwiched between us, and moaned happily.

Sandie pushed me off causing the Slowpoke to fall to the ground. "Blue! What's going on? Why did you put that Pokémon's tail in my mouth? Are you messing me with again? That was so gross!" she yelled.

"Ha! You're not going to believe me, but you and I got infected with that Spinarak's venom. I made a couple of calls, and found out that Slowpoke's tail has curing effects. So we sucked on it…" I explained. Sandie arched her eyebrow, and looked like she didn't believe a single word I said. _I feel so awkward about that. It was such an intrusion of privacy to put that tail in her mouth._

"Oh…well…I think I'm going to take it easy. I'm still feeling a little light-headed. But, uh, thanks for all that…I think. Is it alright if I call my grampa on your pokegear?" she said with a weak smile.

"Yeah, sure! But please don't mention you being close to dying or anything. I don't think that would be a smart move…" I replied.

_I can't believe what we've been through recently: Surviving an accidental/near fatal poisoning, trekking back to the forest opening, and sucking on a Pokémon's tail! I hope I can get the taste of Slowpoke tail out of my mouth – Yuck! But I'm really thankful for finding that Slowpoke; I don't think we'd be around without him. I decided to name him Panacea after what Glenn told me how a Slowpoke's tail can heal. It's been tough moving through the forest again; Sandie and I have not recovered fully. Our pace has been pretty slow, and we are unable to cover ground quickly on Boulderboa because she was worn out after our last ride through the woods. I can't wait to make it to Goldenrod! A Pok__ѐ__ Center has never sounded so appealing. _I sighed deeply.

I looked down at my pokegear to check the map. _It looks like we got at least another eight miles to walk to exit this dark place. _

"Something the wrong?" said Sandie, wheezing.

"Yeah! I want to get out of here. We practically lost all progress yesterday thanks to you!" I shouted.

"I'm so sorry, Blue! I didn't know that spider Pokémon would do that to you!" she cried.

"That is why people don't go catching Pokémon for other people! I didn't have a connection with it, and it went psycho on us!" I said, fuming.

"I-I-I just wanted to thank you some way for all you did…for us," Sandie mumbled. She dramatically dropped to the ground, and began crying. _Great Blue! You're making her cry! What an adventure!_

"Look Sandie, I didn't really mean that. I'm really thankful for the effort, but you really didn't have to catch me a Pokémon. You and Kurt gave me this awesome belt, which I know I'll put to good use," I said patting her on the back.

"I know you like the belt from grampa! But I wanted to do something for you just by myself! You don't understand! I wanted to show you I can be a good Pokémon trainer, too!" Sandie yelled.

"Oh…" I said. After a few moments, I helped her back to her feet. "You know you have proved to me that you are a good Pokémon trainer. I wasn't capable of catching a Pokémon on my own right away – I had an old man help me. You're pretty good in my books," I said.

"Really?" she squealed.

"Yup. Can we get a move on, now?" I said smiling.

We marched through Ilex Forest with relative ease, and along the way we battled several wild Pokémon (Some of which actually tried to attack us!). After some coaxing, Sandra persuaded me to spend some quality training time with my latest addition, Panacea. His first battle was against a two foot-tall, stout, walking hedge of grass called Oddish. I figured Panacea should be more than capable to take out this strange eyesore, but I was mistaken. Panacea was unaffected by this grass Pokémon more than anything. The wild Oddish made the first move, oozing out a vat of acid at Panacea hitting him squarely on the face. Instead of dodging the attack the chubby amphibian Pokémon stood around, and stared blankly at its opponent. I switched Panacea after it took several more blows without reacting or listening to my commands with Boulderboa. I assumed a massive rock Pokémon would easily crush the lame grass Pokémon. I was wrong. I watched as the wild Oddish performed several attacks draining BB's energy; she was barely hanging in there against the grass Pokémon. I desperately swapped once more to Smiley in an attempt to prevent serious damage to Boulderboa. Smiley defeated the Oddish with a well-timed nightshade attack. _Thank Arceus that was over! I bet that Oddish couldn't even see Smiley – wait where is he?_

Slurp. Smiley gave me an ethereal lick on the face. I got chills. "Yuck! Smiley what did I tell you about that?" I shouted. Sandra giggled as she watched on. I gave her a cold stare in return. I returned Smiley to his Pokѐball, and ghost-saliva off me. _We have a lot of work ahead of us. Maybe we should be spending more time training? _

"Hey Blue! Why don't we set up soon? I think our Pokémon may be tired from travelling and training," suggested Sandra.

"Good point, I think I might be beat, too."

We set up a small camp at a clearing, and I was feeling somewhat dizzy. Sandra had all the Pokémon help her ready a campsite while I hung back sitting on a fallen tree. _I think the venom is still affecting me. I'm glad we opted to call it a day so soon. _ I stared blankly at the recently built fire, and let out a loud yawn.

"Blue, do you have any pokѐ-feed with you?" asked Sandra bringing me back to reality.

"Huh? what? Yeah, I can go for some food," I replied, half-listening.

"No, I mean food for Pokémon," she clarified shaking her head.

"Oh….What's that?" I asked. I looked at Jaws. He looked exhausted, and he lazily snapped his Jaws.

"Blue, have you been feeding your Pokémon?" questioned on Sandra, looking deeply concerned.

"Well, I usually give them scraps of whatever I've been eating. Don't Pokѐ Centers feed them while they're healing them or something?" I replied confident in my answer.

"The nurses only feed the Pokémon they're treating minimally, nothing to satisfy a complete meal! How long have you been doing this?" Sandra pressed on showing a little anger.

"Uh, as long as I've had them. I've never really fed BB or Smiley, though. I've offered my scraps and stuff, but they refused to eat it," I explained.

"Blue! An Onix feeds on minerals in the ground! I bet that poor Pokémon is starving! Allow him to do so!" barked Sandra fiercely.

"Boulderboa, go feed or whatever," I moaned. _ I feel like I'm gonna pass out._ Boulderboa tilted her head and stared at me confused what to do next.

"Blue! How can you consider yourself a trainer when you hardly feed your Pokémon?" shouted Sandra completely upset.

"I'm sorry! I figured they would manage or scrounge up something on their own! I don't know," I retorted.

Sandra then went on to lecture me on the do's and don'ts on Pokémon feeding habits. Apparently people-food leads to shorter lives for most Pokémon, and they will become winded quicker as well. I also learned that most Oran berries are perfect food for all Pokémon – even types like BB. Sandra also explained that Ghost Pokémon like Smiley does not need to eat because they're ghosts. She also informed me how other different types eat different foods; Boulderboa feeds on rocks and minerals in the ground for example. After a thirty minute lecture, Sandie allowed me to pass out when she finished quizzing me over what she discussed. _Ugh. I hate how she makes me realize how bad a trainer I am_.

"Today we will get out of here!" I declared. I finished my breakfast of assorted forest berries found by our Pokémon. I scanned my map on my pokegear, and we only had four miles left.

"Yeah! Let's do it!" Sandie replied happily.

We pressed on in the perpetual dark Ilex Forest, and we made time for chit-chat while we walked. I learned that Sandra was raised by her grandfather as long as she could remember. She also informed me that she knew her parents are alive and out in the world somewhere, and she eagerly wants to meet them someday. I asked her why she hadn't before, and she said that she doesn't know why. _That's weird. I wonder why her grandfather would keep that from her._ Sandra begged me to let her look at my Pokѐdex in return for answering my questions, and I allowed her to do so.

The hours flew by as we walked through the thick forest. We took our time so I could teach Sandra some of the basics and tactics to Pokémon battling. Sandra wasn't too keen on battling, and would freak out every time Edward could've been hurt. She said it was too scary to think about Edward getting really hurt or dead. I noticed Edward did not share his owners lack of responsiveness; leaving him to his own devices in our battles. _Hmm. Never really thought about that stuff too much…_ I told her sometimes battling is a matter of life or death, and you must risk your Pokémon sometimes. She hesitated to agree, and instead recited another Ranger Rule. "Pokémon are partners and friends, thusly should be treated as such." I let out a long yawn, and we moved along.

Growing weary, we were on lookout for another spot to set up camp, and I spotted a small fire in the distance. "Let's go check out what's going on over there," I said turning to the young brunette. Sandra nodded. The closer we inched to the campfire the more excited I became as I could make out a figure sitting against one of the many trees of Ilex forest. _Another person! I wonder who else would travel through Ilex Forest. I wish it's a powerful trainer! …Or in the very least an exciting person. Anyone would be better than little bookworm, Sandie!_

"Well look who it is! None other than the great Blue Slade," grumbled lowly by redheaded girl with a great big cowboy hat as we neared the outskirts of the campsite. The shadow of her hat covered the girl's face as she sat close to the fire.

"No freaking way! Quim?" I shouted running over. _Wish granted._

"Didn't expect to see me again so soon?" she replied in a sweet voice yet coldly.

"Well, I don't know! I'm just excited to see you! It's been like…what a month?" I answered earnestly.

"Try a couple, Blue," she responded.

"Dang! Really?" I said scratching my head in bewilderment.

"Yes, really. Are you going to introduce me to your new girlfriend?" Quim asked motioning to Sandra peeping behind me. I pulled Sandra out from behind me, and she sheepishly stared at the ground.

"This is Sandie! She's seven years old, and comes from Azalea Town. Her grandfather asked me to take her along with me on my adventure to become the best trainer!" I explained, ending by looking up to where the sky would normally be to look heroic.

"So you're dating a seven year old?" scoffed Quim. Sandra turned a bright red from this remark that was clearly visible despite the dimness of the fire.

"No way! Sandie's just my, uh,…" I said half-cocked. _What is Sandie to me?_

"I'm – I'm his friend, lady!" chimed in Sandra still blushing.

"Ah, I see now. My mistake Sandie, I'm Quimbly. Nice to meet you! Oh, and might I add you've picked a very reliable friend to travel with," said Quimbly sweetly but with a smirk. _Was that a dig to me? Maybe she wants me to apologize about leaving her before._

"It is Sandra!" Sandra retorted quickly. She then took to hiding behind me.

"Look Quim, I'm sorry about before, y'know?" I chimed in.

"Sorry about leaving me high and dry in Violet City?" she asked with vehemence.

"Well…yeah!" I replied excitedly. _Problem solved!_ Quimbly did not react by my words, and just stared at me angrily with her arms crossed.

"This is fun…" I said awkwardly.

"No, you know what would be fun, Blue?" asked Quimbly.

"What is that?" I replied.

"A Pokémon battle between you and me! I want to show you how strong my Pokémon and I've gotten!" exclaimed Quim staring into my eyes with a determination I've never seen before. I had a hard time returning the look back at her big, green, determined eyes.

"Yeah, let's do it! It'd be great to see your Pokémon again, and to see your skills!" I replied eagerly, but my energy couldn't match Quim's ferocity.

Quimbly took my invitation without missing a beat, stood up and slowly stepped backwards. She reached for a Pokѐball on her belt and released a winged two-foot tall Pokémon stading one short leg near the dim fire. _Wow! I think she's really upset with me!_ "Sandie, I want you to stay behind me, okay?" I whispered over my shoulder. Sandra nodded frantically. _Now who should I use to take on this scary-looking Pokémon? _"Pokѐdex!" squealed Sandra.

I hastily whipped out the Pokémon encyclopedia to learn more about my opponent; "HOOTHOOT, OWL POKЀMON. IT HAS A PERFECT SENSE OF TIME. WHATEVER HAPPENS, IT KEEPS RHYTHM BY PRECISELY TILTING ITS HEAD IN TIME." Quim's Hoothood cooed in response to the pokedex's voice. _I think I've heard those things before when walking around at night! Wait – Get your head in the game!_ _What's good against flying Pokémon? Water seemed to do okay; it seemed to do the job against Hawkeye's flying Pokémon._

"Go Jaws!" I shouted releasing my short blue alligator Pokémon. Jaws snapped his mouth excitedly. _He hasn't had a battle in a while…This should be good for him!_

"Jaws, Bulk Up!" I ordered. _I'm still unsure what to expect from that Hoothoot; better to be pumped up than take a beating._ Jaws stood still concentrating deeply while his muscles bulged slightly.

"Hoothoot Foresight!" barked Quim. The owl Pokémon now hovered low off the ground behind the camp fire watching Jaws constantly moving its head. _Hmm. What'd that do?_

"Jaws use Water Gun!" I commanded. The Totodile Pokémon unleashed a small stream of water from its mouth knocking the bird Pokémon to the ground, and dousing the fire. _Whoops! I totally did not intend for that to happen! _I desperately looked for the owl Pokémon in the vicinity, but I could only see a few yards around me. Jaws looked a little weary at this new development; searching just as frantically for his enemy.

"Tackle!" shouted Quimbly. The abruptness of my opponent's order took me off guard, and before I had a chance to react Hoothoot flew in and knocked down Jaws with an aerial tackle. Then the owl Pokémon vanished back into darkness of the forest. _This is bad! This is really bad! I can't see anything! Oh man, I better take those shades off Jaws! I bet he really can't see! I can't believe I almost forgot about that! _ I hurriedly ran to where Jaws was standing, hopelessly searching for his opponent, and removed his sunglass. Jaws nearly snapped my hand off at this, and I whispered "Only just this time, buddy!"

"Tackle!" ordered Quimbly once more not waiting for my next move. _I won't let her land another attack! _"Water Gun!" I yelled. Jaws unleashed a torrent of water unsure where his target was. "Caw!" cried Hoothoot as Jaws' attack hit it. _I knew it would have to come in close to land that attack – good thing Water Gun has some reach!_ I listened as the owl Pokémon crashed into the ground, sliding and ruffling through the thick, tall grass.

"Gotcha!" I yelled, jumping in the air with a fist pump.

"It's not over yet! Hoothoot use Roost!" Quimbly shouted back. _Roost? Isn't that the T.M. move that you get from beating Violet City gym?_

"You beat Hawkeye? Good job!" I said, getting lost in the moment.

"And I'm going to beat you, too!" retorted Quimbly. _Sheesh! Angry much? What now? I can't see that Hoothoot, and I can't standby to let it recover like that. It's probably perched up somewhere high in these trees…CUT! _

"Jaws Cut down those trees!" I ordered. Jaws snorted, understanding the command. He waddled to the closest tree and began hacking away with his sharp claws. _I'm so glad I defeated that monk back in Bellsprout Tower for that H.M.; it might give me an edge! I think that guy said it would give Jaws claws extra strength and make them razor-sharp!_ Within moments the thin tree toppled over.

"Good work Jaws! Keep it up! Try another tree!" I said. Jaws began working on chopping down a different tree immediately sparing no time. _If we hurry we can get the drop on Hoothoot! _This tree toppled over and no sign of Hoothoot. "Another quickly, Jaws!" With more determination and finesse Jaws toppled over two more trees and we couldn't find HootHoot. Then on the fifth attempt, the tree toppled over and we heard Hoothoot's shriek as it crashed with the tree into the ground.

"I'm impressed, Blue! I didn't think you'd be capable of finding Hoothoot!" said Quimbly stepping forward. With a short burst of red light she returned her Pokémon.

"Thanks! If we're continuing this battle, uhm, do you think there's any way we can get another fire going? We can't really see what's going on," I replied.

Quimbly chuckled. "Figures. You're the one that took out the fire! I thought you did that on purpose!"

"Yeah that was an accident; I didn't really intend on doing that," I explained. _Man, I feel like an idiot._

"Alright…I'll fix it and we're going to continue this battle!" she said. She unleashed a new Pokémon. The Pokémon looked like a living fireball; it was a three-foot tall orange and red cat-like creature with a roaring fire for its fur-like mane and tail. _So cooooooooool! _I hastily scanned it with my Pokѐdex; "IT FLUFFS OUT ITS FUR COLLAR TO COOL DOWN ITS BODY TEMPERATURE, WHICH CAN REACH 1,650 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT." The Flareon Pokémon spat out an ember igniting the campfire once more. She was smiling. _Maybe she doesn't hate me! I hope she won't hate me after beating her._

"Better?" asked Quimbly smirking. I simply nodded, dumbfounded by how awesome her new Pokémon was.

"Do you recognize Flareon?" she asked. I shook my head, no.

"It's Eevee! I bought a firestone while I was in Goldenrod City! Can you believe it?" she explained with a hint of excitement.

"Wow! That's so cool! So I guess he 'evolved'?" I muttered.

"Yup! Jealous? I see your Totodile hasn't changed much!" she replied smirking again. _Jaws has changed! He's so much stronger than back in Violet City!_

"Jaws will show you how much he's changed!" I countered. I took a glance to my partner, Jaws, and gave him a furtive head nod. _I hope he understood that as a good full-throttle head nod._

"Flareon use Quick Attack!" ordered Quimbly. Before I got a chance to issue Jaws an order a blur of orange swiftly knocked over Jaws.

"Jaws! Are you okay?" I shouted. Jaws let out low moan. _He's not good. I think that attack knocked the wind out of him…But I think water Pokémon have an edge over fire type Pokémon._

"Jaws Water Gun!" I commanded.

"Flareon Quick Attack to Bite!" Quimbly shouted at the same time as me.

Flareon rushed over to Jaws as he was opening his mouth to shoot out a torrent of water. _This was going to be close!_ Flareon landed his attack first, tackling Jaws to the ground. Flareon, then, bit Jaws, and Jaws cried out in pain. I instinctively returned him to his Pokѐball. _Wow, maybe Quimbly is a lot better than I ever thought! I didn't think Flareon would be capable of defeating Jaws. I should probably use someone incredibly strong now!_

I reached for my next Pokѐball, and released Berserk. _Show Quimbly how much stronger you've become! Don't let me down!_ Upon release Berserk pounded his chest and howled. _I can't tell is that anger or excitement? _

"Wow, that's really Berserk, huh? Now, he looks like he's evolved. He looks so much bigger!" Berserk howled at Quimbly with contempt. "Well...he sure acts the same," remarked Quimbly.

"Berserk, don't take any chances! Use Seismic Toss!" I ordered, disregarding her comment.

Berserk stayed put and crossed his arms; as if to say 'Forget you, Blue! I'm gonna do whatever I want!'

"Berserk! Listen to me! Use Seismic Toss!" I shouted. Berserk took my latest instruction as 'Take a load off.', and he sat on the ground.

"This will get his motor going…Flareon Ember!" said Quimbly.

Flareon spat out a few fiery embers at Berserk; most missed its intended target, yet a couple made direct contact with Berserk causing him to jump up and shriek in pain. Quimbly chuckled at this development. _Why won't he listen to me? He is going to get his butt kicked!_

"Berserk! Karate Chop!..Please!" I said.

Instead of listening to my orders, Berserk decided to jump in the air and go for a Low Kick on Flareon. "Flareon use Ember again!" ordered Quimbly. Flareon shot red-hot embers at Berserk, and one made contact at his stretched-out leg. This caused Berserk to fumble his attack and he crash landed into the ground writhing in pain. _I've had enough of this. _

I returned Berserk to his Pokѐball and released Boulderboa. The massive rock-snake Pokémon towered over the fire Pokémon. _I really think we can beat this Flareon now._

"BB! Hit Flareon with a Rock Throw!"

"Flareon use Dig!"

_Dig?_ Flareon quickly dug into the soft ground nimbly missing Boulderboa's launched rock from her tail. "Again BB!" Boulderboa launched another rock towards Flareon, but it was another miss – Flareon was gone, underground somewhere. Then BAM! Out of nowhere, Flareon busted through the ground and bolted up in the air near BB, upper-cutting my Onix in the jaw. Boulderboa roared in pain as her body slowly fell backwards from the powerful blow. "Now finish her with Ember while you're falling down!" _Oh no! _"Get up Boulderboa! You can't lose like this!" My words did no good; Flareon shot embers directly into BB's face as he landed gracefully on the ground. Boulderboa bellowed in pain; her face appeared charred from the attack. _It's over for her. I don't want her to get knocked out or worse; I might need her for later!_

"Return BB," I said zapping her inside the comfort and protection of her Pokѐball. _What now? I've only got Smiley and Spinner left! _

"Go Smiley! Show Quimbly what we got!" I shouted as Smiley entered the battle. The floating ghost Pokémon turned and winked at me. He turned his attention to Flareon and stuck out his large tongue at it. _Man, I love that Pokémon! _I noticed Quimbly was frowning a little, and I smiled. _She's never liked him much after Smiley freaked her out that one time right after I first caught him._

"Smiley use Night Shade!" I ordered.

"Flareon use Quick Attack!"

I saw the lightening quick orange blur once more, but this time Flareon phased right through Smiley crashing onto the ground. _Score! Quimbly forgot that Normal type attacks don't work on Ghost Pokémon! Sucker!_ Smiley rose up higher, further away from the fire and unleashed his attack. Smiley looked like a dark aura enveloped around him, and then the dark aura enveloped Flareon. Flareon looked like it was under great pressure from the attack, and yelped in pain.

"Good job, Smiley! Keep it up!" I yelled.

"Use Curse!" I ordered.

"Flareon try Ember," said Quimbly.

Smiley disappeared suddenly, and then Flareon seem afflicted by something. Flareon was barking angrily and kept shaking its head as if something was inside of it. Then just as suddenly Smiley appeared once more floating nearby. Flareon seemed dazed by Curse, yet at the same time Smiley seemed tired – he was panting heavily. Flareon mustered up some strength and shot out some poorly aimed embers; none of which hit Smiley. Then out of the blue, Flareon collapsed falling over on its side. _Finally! That was one tough Pokémon! _

"I'm actually surprised you beat Flareon! We've been training hard for this battle! I think Flaafy will finish the job!" shouted Quimbly. She returned her injured Pokémon and substituted it with a standing upright sheep Pokémon with large tufts of white fur and pink skin. _That must be Mareep's evolution! It doesn't look much different except it has less fur. If I remember right, Mareep was electric. I hope Smiley can handle her._

"Smiley use Nightshade!" I ordered.

"Flaafy use Cottonspore then Charge!" shouted Quimbly.

Smiley landed the first attack; Flaafy had the painful darkness around her. She didn't seem fazed by the attack much, however. She shook her fur and little bits of cotton floated towards Smiley. _Wow, I think this might be the lamest Pokémon attack I've ever seen! _While Smiley did his best to avoid the army of small puffs, Flaafy was gaining energy – I could spot electricity bouncing around her fur.

"Smiley use Confuse Ray!"

"Flaafy try Thundershock!"

I shut my eyes and looked away from the intense light. I turned around, as did Sandie (Who I almost forgot was there!), and was pleased with what I saw. Smiley was floating around lively as ever, and Flaafy was unconscious on the blackened ground. _What a save! _

"Good job, Smiley!" Sandie and I cheered.

Quimbly looked disappointed at the outcome, and with a disappointed grunt she returned her Pokémon. She threw out another Pokѐball releasing a flying bug Pokémon. It looked like a thinner, taller, bipedal, cooler-looking sister of Ledyba. _What happened to Ledyba?_ The ladybug Pokémon hovered off the ground with its rapidly flapping wings and was cracking its knuckles on each of its four hands menacingly.

"Ledian'll show you who's the best, Blue!" she yelled.

"We'll see about that! Smiley's got some punch left in him!" I shouted back.

"Ledian use Silver Wind!"

"Smiley use Night Shade!"

Ledian wiggled its thorax, turned backwards, and it looked like it was flapping its wings at an even faster rate. I grabbed Sandie and we nimbly jumped away from Smiley. _Hopefully Smiley'll land his attack before – _Smiley let out a loud hiss like sound and his round, purple head dramatically fell to the ground. _Man! I got to be more careful with that Curse attack of his; it drains too much of his stamina. _I returned the ghost Pokémon, and reached for Spinner's Pokѐball. _Should I give up? I haven't really trained him much – he could really get hurt out there. No! I can't do that! She's really showing me her best, and so should I!_ I tossed out Panacea's Pokѐball into the fray, and he came out yawning as if he just awoke from a nap. _Ugh! I'm grateful for this Pokémon and all, but MAN is he lazy!_

"Panacea! Focus! We can beat this dumb Pokémon!" I shouted. The Slowpoke Pokémon perked up at my orders and stared at his opponent head-on with steely determination.

"Panacea try Confusion!" I ordered.

"Ledian! Repel the attack – use Protect!" commanded Quimbly.

Panacea changed his stance, closed his eyes, and then opened them. His eyes emitted a purple glow. _How freaking cool!_ I shifted my view back to Quimbly's Pokémon anticipating the attack to hit Ledian, then she emanated a light. The light acted as some sort of barrier and deflected the purpleish aura enveloped the light-barrier, and then faded. _Whoa! What a cool move!_ I looked back at Panacea, and he seemed exhausted from performing Confusion. _Not good!_ "Hang in there!"

"Use Comet Punch now!" Quim shouted.

Ledian flew over to where the dazed Panacea stood with outstretched arm, and launched a powerful blow causing my Pokémon to tumble backwards. Panacea was knocked out with a single hit. _Poor Panacea! He didn't have a chance…_

"Well I'm out, Quim," I moaned, returning my Pokémon.

"Yes! We did it! We **crushed** Blue Slade!" Quimbly cried out hugging her Ledian who also seemed quite excited about the situation. _I will never hear the end of this._

"It's okay, Blue. You're probably out of sync. The Rangers always say –"

"Not now, Sandie. I do not need any more guidance" I grunted. I walked over to Quimbly and hoped she would be kind about my loss and considering I have, like, no money whatsoever.

"Hey. I, uh, just wanted to say you really did a good job – in battling me I mean. I can't believe how strong you've gotten!" I said as Quim was still celebrating her win with her Pokémon. My words immediately halted the joyous victory, and fiery girl gave me an ice-cold stare.

After a long uncomfortable, soul-crushing stare down Quim sPokѐ. "I bet you can't believe this! You thought you were invincible before; I hope this will keep you grounded. Where's my winnings?" she replied. _Ouch! Quick to the point!_

"Yeah, about that…I don't really have any money," I mumbled avoiding her gaze.

"What was that?" Quimbly asked aggressively, now getting in my face.

"I lost all my money to this dweeby gym leader in Azalea. Sorry," I said looking back in her blue eyes, shrugging.

"This is so like you!" snapped Quim, turning away from me with her arms crossed.

"I know, and, Quim, believe me I feel horrible about it. The last thing I want to be is unfair to you. It's not cool. I still feel horrible for leaving…before. I want to make it up to you," I said touching her shoulder. _Think fast!_

"Go on," she said, now facing me.

"I want…I want to offer you the opportunity to train with me," I said full of vigor. _I totally nailed it!_

Quimbly cackled with laughter. And moments later Sandy laughed as well. I impulsively scowled at the little girl. Sandie tried to mask her laughter by turning it into a rather weak-sounding cough.

"Okay, not the reaction I wanted. How about you help me train my Pokémon then? To be honest I haven't won a battle in too long," I said amidst the ongoing laughter.

"Are you serious? Explain to me how this makes up for you not giving me my _winnings!_" she said pointedly. _It's amazing how quick to anger she's getting._

"Well, once I start making some money by beating some trainers I can pay you back, of course!" I explained. Quimbly didn't react much to what I said. She simply looked at me. She looked right into my eyes and I returned the look unflinchingly.

"Alright, let's do it," Quim said calmly.

"Yay! I get to be with another strong trainer! Quimbly you are amazing!" squeaked Sandra, who was now close to us. Quimbly turned and smiled at her. She then raised an eyebrow to me.

"Yeah, she's a package deal," I said shrugging my shoulders.

"Looks like it. Why don't we sit down around the fire, heal your weak Pokémon, eat some of my food, and plan what's next?" Quim said smirking

"…Fine," I moaned. _I will be travelling with two girls. I think this is what Dad meant by women can be hell._

"So, I take it that you two were heading towards Goldenrod City?" asked Quim over the roaring campfire.

"Yeah, I understand that's where the next gym is," I said with my mouth full of delicious store-bought prepared dinner.

"So good!" I exclaimed after swallowing. Sandie took a moment to nod while wolfing down her share.

"Oh well! I was hoping to go to Azalea. I have already gotten my badge from Goldenrod, but I guess I'll go to Azalea later," Quim said watching us eat.

"Are you going to eat that?" I asked pointing to her plate of food that looked like she hadn't even started.

"No, go ahead," she replied. Quim handed me her plate of food and I immediately went to town on the food.

"While you two are enjoying yourselves, I'm going to heal and feed my Pokémon. Why don't you release yours?" she said standing up. Sandie and I both took a breather and unleashed our Pokémon from their Pokѐballs. All of my Pokémon were wounded and several were completely knocked out. Sandie's Edward sighed deeply and stretched his scythe arms wide.

"Blue, you totally owe me," sighed Quimbly.

Quimbly woke us up what felt like was incredibly early – it's hard to tell because of the perpetual darkness. As we ate our breakfast, she informed us that Goldenrod was pretty close. It would only take a couple of hours to get out of the forest, and then several more to reach the city. Excited and determined we made tracks.

"Sunlight! Oh my god! I don't think I'd ever been so excited to see that big yellow thing," I exclaimed as the forest was thinning out. _We are so close I can taste the big city._

"I don't think I've ever been so happy to get sweaty," said Sandie. We all laughed at her comment.

We finally made contact with Route 34, and we walked along the path leading to Goldenrod City. We took a break around one o'clock to eat some lunch and relax. Our Pokémon were as happy as us about being outside of Ilex Forest except for Spinner. He looked a little sullen. _Poor Spinner probably misses his home. Hopefully he'll get over it. _I suddenly felt incredibly hot, and began sweating.

"Hey. Quim, Sandie, does it feel really hot to you?" I asked. Sandie's eyes bulged. Quim pointed behind me.

"Blue Slade, right?" asked an attractive brunette girl with flowing black hair sitting upon large fire horse towering over me. I smiled and nodded.


End file.
